Islamabad, Jul 23 (IANS): An 18-month-old infant was paralysed by wild poliovirus in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province (KP), the National Institute of Health confirmed to the media.
The total number of polio cases in the country this year has increased to 13 with all of them from southern KP, the Health Ministry spokesperson said on Friday, adding that the virus has a significant presence in the area.
The government is taking practical steps to ensure polio eradication, with access to polio vaccination being facilitated on an emergency basis to the districts in need, said the Health Ministry as quoted by Xinhua news agency report.
A polio campaign will be launched in mid-August in southern KP, the Ministry added.