NIH says polio positives drop nationwide, but transmission yet to be halted

• Balochistan records only one positive site.
• Sindh positives fall to 12 districts in July.
• Next vaccination drive scheduled for early Sept.

ISLAMABAD: While the overall trend shows a decline in positive environmental detections of the poliovirus, reflecting the impact of high-quality vaccination campaigns, the virus continues to circulate in certain parts of Pakistan, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) said.

According to July data from the country’s environmental surveillance system, 127 sewage samples were collected from 87 districts, the NIH said in a statement issued on Tuesday.

Testing at the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication in Islamabad confirmed 75 samples as negative and 42 as positive, with 10 samples still under process.

Balochistan recorded a marked reduction, with only one positive environmental surveillance site in July compared to 15 in January. Of the 23 sites tested in the province, 22 were negative, including six out of seven in Quetta Block.

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, positive sites dropped from 14 in January to seven in July, with 24 sites testing negative. Three of the seven positives came from South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while in Peshawar, four of six sites tested negative.

Punjab reported 12 positive sites in July, down from 15 in March. Sindh saw a decline in districts with positive detections, from 20 in March to 12 in July. In Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, all samples tested so far this year have been negative.

Over the past year, Pakistan’s Polio Programme has conducted six high-quality vaccination campaigns — four nationwide — each reaching over 45 million children.

These efforts have significantly reduced both polio cases and positive environmental samples, marking strong progress toward interrupting transmission.

The next sub-national polio vaccination campaign will run from September 1 to 7, aiming to vaccinate 28 million children across 91 districts in all provinces and regions.

Authorities have urged parents and caregivers to ensure children receive their drops in this round.

In addition to polio drops, the government provides free routine immunisation for children up to 15 months old, offering protection against multiple preventable diseases. Repeated polio vaccination alongside routine immunisation strengthens immunity and prevents lifelong paralysis.

NIH stressed that polio eradication remains a collective responsibility, calling on parents, communities, and local leaders to support vaccination teams, counter misinformation, and ensure every child receives every dose.