PESHAWAR: A polio worker was abducted by unidentified individuals in Bara tehsil of Khyber district, while residents of Hangu have threatened to boycott the ongoing anti-polio campaign over the acute shortage of water.
According to sources, the polio team member, Rehman Gul, was abducted while on routine duty in the Bar Qambar Khel area. He was serving as a polio officer at the Basic Health Unit (BHU) in Abdullah Jan Kally (village).
Meanwhile, residents of Sangeerh locality in Hangu staged a protest against the suspension of the government’s water supply, which they claim has been cut off for several months, severely disrupting daily life. Protesters warned that if the water supply is not restored within two days, they will not allow polio teams to administer drops to their children.
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“We have no objection to the polio campaign, but unless we are provided with basic necessities like clean water, we will not cooperate with polio teams,” the locals declared.
It is worth noting that the latest polio eradication campaign in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa began yesterday and will continue for five days in 36 districts, with an extended seven-day drive in Peshawar and Khyber. The campaign aims to immunize 6.53 million children, and over 35,500 teams have been deployed across the province.
