Balochistan Chief Secretary Shakeel Qadir Khan officially launched a special anti-polio campaign by administering polio drops to children at a ceremony. Tragically, on the same day, a vaccination drive official was shot dead in Chaman.
The launch ceremony followed a high-level Polio Task Force meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Shakeel Qadir Khan, during which the province’s polio situation was reviewed, and strategies for the upcoming campaign were finalized.
Speaking to the media, the Chief Secretary announced that the campaign will commence on September 1, covering 26 districts and aiming to vaccinate approximately 2 million children against poliovirus.
Shakeel Qadir highlighted encouraging progress in Balochistan’s fight against polio, revealing that 22 out of 23 environmental samples tested negative, and no new polio cases have been reported in the last 10 months marking a significant achievement. However, he emphasized the need for continued vigilance, especially in areas with positive environmental samples, such as Baleli, a suburb of Quetta where the virus was recently detected.
Reaffirming the government’s commitment to eradicating polio in Balochistan, Khan urged parents to ensure their children receive the life-saving vaccine during the campaign.
To support this effort, the provincial administration, in collaboration with health authorities and international partners, will deploy thousands of health workers to reach every eligible child, with special focus on high-risk zones.
In a tragic incident, a supervisor of the anti-polio program was shot dead by unidentified armed assailants in Chaman, a town on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
According to officials, the attack took place in the Killi Muhammad Hussain area of Roghani, on Chaman’s outskirts.
Qari Abdul Qadir, the polio program supervisor, was conducting a polio awareness campaign ahead of the official launch on September 1. While accompanied by other polio workers, including female staff, unidentified gunmen on motorcycles opened fire on him, Assistant Commissioner Imtiaz Ali Baloch reported.
Qari Abdul Qadir sustained multiple gunshot wounds and died instantly. Police arrived quickly and transported his body to District Hospital Chaman, where death was confirmed.
The female workers and others present during the attack were unharmed. Local JUI-F leaders confirmed that Qari Abdul Qadir was the leader (Salar) of JUI-F Chaman and have called for a protest rally in response to his killing.
