ISLAMABAD: After environment samples were found positive for the poliovirus in Islamabad and Rawalpindi last month, a special campaign was on Monday launched in the high risk areas of the twin cities.

During the campaign, the oral polio vaccine (OPV) will be administered to children in all the union councils (UCs) of the federal capital and 73 selected UCs of Rawalpindi.

If a poliovirus is found in sewage, it is called positive.

The sewage sample from any area is the basic parameter to see if polio campaigns are being carried out successfully or not.

The samples found positive for the virus were collected from Sabzi Mandi Islamabad and Dhoke Dalal and Saf darabad localities of Rawalpindi.

The presence of a poliovirus in the sewage also shows that the immunity level of the children in that particular area has decreased and they are at the risk of contracting the disease.

The head of the National Emergency Operation Centre, Dr Rana Safdar, told Dawn that around 0.724 million children under the age of five years 0.416 million in Rawalpindi and 0.308 million in Islamabad would be targeted in the special campaign by utilising around 0.811 million doses of OPV.

`Around 6,000 personnel are participating in the campaign, including 488 area incharges and 2,666 teams. Both Rawalpindi and Islamabad will also be covered during the April and May nationwide campaigns before the start of the high transmission season,` he said.

It may be mentioned that during the winter season, from September to May, the poliovirus remains less active and can be eradicated easily. This period is called the low transmission season.-A Reporter