NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Friday, May 16, 2014

Here’s yet another example of how ugly terrorism can get: Health workers in Pakistan’s restive Khyber tribal region are administering polio drops to children below 10 years of age under army protection.

The reason is quite simple, yet heart-rending: Militants’ activities in the region have rendered Malikdin Khel – the region where the polio-vaccination drive is underway – volatile and a no-go area for the past some time.

Under cover of the army and Frontier Corps, health workers on Thursday administered the vaccine to children in Malikdin Khel. An official said that under each phase, 75,900 children had to be immunised against polio. At present, the fourth phase is in progress. Despite adverse circumstances, the polio campaign has achieved 60 per cent of its target so far, a report said.