ISLAMABAD: The regional reference laboratory for polio eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) has confirmed the detection of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) in environmental samples collected from three districts.

According to an official, sewage samples collected from Thatta, Umerkot and Noshero Feroze in Sindh have tested positive for WPV1.

`Polio is a paralysing disease that has no cure. Multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of five is essential to provide children high immunity against this terrible disease.

`The Pakistan Polio Programme conducts multiple mass vaccination drives in a year, bringing the vaccine to children at their doorsteps while the Expanded Programme on Immunisation provides vaccinations against 12 childhood disease free of charge at health facilities,` he said.

`The year`s first polio vaccination campaign is scheduled to be conducted from February 3 to 9, across the country.

`It is crucial for parents to ensure vaccination for all their children under the age of five to keep them protected,` the official said.