ISLAMABAD (Kashmir English): Pakistan has confirmed another polio case in 2025, this time in the Diamer district of Gilgit-Baltistan, say sources, quoting the National Institute of Health (NIH).
The virus was detected in a 23-month-old child from the Gabar area of Tangir, Diamer, reported sources on Monday. This is the first case of polio reported in Gilgit-Baltistan since 2017 when the last infection was found in the Thore area of the same district.
NIH sources said the sample from the child tested positive for the YB3A4 poliovirus cluster. Genetic testing has linked the virus strain to Karachi, even though the child has no known travel history.
The NIH also raised concerns over the low level of routine immunisation in Diamer, calling it one of the high-risk areas for polio in the region.
Health authorities are now looking into the case in detail and have stressed the urgent need to improve vaccination efforts to stop the virus from spreading further.
Meanwhile, according to the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC), the latest polio vaccination campaign saw strong results across the country. Around 97 per cent of the targeted children were vaccinated during the six-day campaign.
In Punjab and Sindh, 97 per cent of children were reached, while the figure was 98 per cent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Balochistan also recorded 97 per cent coverage.
Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) met a 98 per cent target, and both Gilgit-Baltistan and Islamabad exceeded their targets, reaching 101 per cent of the estimated number of children.
The NEOC also shared that the joint anti-polio campaign between Pakistan and Afghanistan is moving ahead successfully.
Pakistan Polio Eradication Campaign reports the following number of cases of WPV Polio cases in different regions in Pakistan.
As for the cVDPV2 Polio Cases in Pakistan,
Polio cases in Azad Kashmir
The Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme reports that there were no polio cases in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) in 2019 or 2021.
Additionally, thanks to improved surveillance and major contributions from the Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme, AJK has been polio-free for more than 20 years.
This year, for the Polio campaign of the year 2025 too, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) met a 98 per cent target and has not reported cases of either type of polio.
