Polio virus detected in sewage samples of 18 districts

Islamabad: Polio virus has been confirmed in environmental samples collected from 18 districts, indicating the presence of the virus in these areas.

According to a news report, an official of the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) said that sewage samples were collected from 22 districts.

Wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) has been detected in sewage samples from Chaman, Islamabad, South Waziristan Lower, South Waziristan Upper, Lahore, DG Khan, Badin, Dadu, Hyderabad, Jacobabad, Qambar, Karachi East, Central, Keamari and West, Shaheed Benazirabad, Sajawal, and Sukkur.

Meanwhile, the reports of samples from Zhob, Sialkot, Multan, and Rahim Yar Khan have turned out negative.

It is pertinent to note that sewage sample is the basic parameter used to identify the presence of the virus in an area.

This determines whether the polio vaccination campaign is generating the desired immunity in children.

The official said the Pakistan Polio Eradication Program has increased its environmental monitoring sites from 65 in 2021 to 127 in 2025.

The ability to detect poliovirus and polio cases in sewage ensures that no transmission goes unnoticed, even in remote areas.

The program is also conducting a rigorous vaccination campaign to protect children from paralytic polio and prevent transmission of the virus.

The official said the next nationwide polio campaign is scheduled from April 21 to 27, with the aim of vaccinating 45.4 million children under the age of 5 across the country.

In Pakistan, six cases of poliovirus have been reported from Punjab, Sindh, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the first three months of 2025. According to the polio program, 74 cases of polio were reported in the country last year.