PESHAWAR, Pakistan: More than 2.77 million children below five years of age are being immunized against nine fatal diseases including polio during the second round of anti-polio drive began in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Monday.
The polio campaign will continue for two days in Peshawar and three days in other 20 districts of the northwestern province amid strict security arrangements.
The authorities in Peshawar have banned pillion riding due to anti-polio campaign.
471 parents arrested in KPK for refusing polio vaccine
Meanwhile, the police have arrested 471 parents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for refusing to vaccinate their children against polio.
The officials said that the arrests were made under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) on the directives of Deputy Commissioner of Peshawar Riaz Khan Mehsud.
Pakistan is one of only three countries – other two are Afghanistan and Nigeria – in the world where polio remains endemic.
However, attempts to eradicate the crippling disease in the country have been badly hit by reluctance from parents, opposition from militants and attacks on immunisation teams.
