By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan confirmed a new polio case in Hyderabad, bringing the national total to 27 cases this year, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) said on Monday, underscoring persistent challenges in eradicating the crippling disease in one of the last two countries where it remains endemic.
The latest case, reported in Sindh, raises the province’s tally to seven in 2025, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) accounting for 18 cases, and Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan each reporting one, according to an NIH statement. “With this detection, the total number of polio cases in Pakistan in 2025 has reached 27 – including 18 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, seven from Sindh, and one each from Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan,” the NIH said.
Pakistan, alongside Afghanistan, is one of the only two countries where polio, a highly infectious and incurable disease that can cause lifelong paralysis, remains endemic. Despite global efforts to eliminate the virus, the country reported 71 polio cases across approximately 90 districts i 2024, a sharp rise from six cases in 2023 and just one in 2021.
The new case follows the detection of two polio cases in KP earlier this month, one in a 19-month-old infant in Mir Ali tehsil of North Waziristan and another in an 11-month-old infant in Suleman Khel tehsil of Lakki Marwat.
Pakistan’s National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) for Polio Eradication conducted a sub-national vaccination campaign in September 2025 across 88 districts, including Hyderabad, immunizing approximately 21 million children under the age of five, the NIH said. “Polio Eradication conducted a Sub-National Polio Vaccination Campaign in September 2025 across 88 districts of the country including Hyderabad,” the NIH statement read.
The next nationwide polio immunization campaign is scheduled for October 13-19, targeting approximately 45.4 million children. “More than 400,000 dedicated frontline polio workers will go door-to-door to ensure that every child is reached,” the NIH said, emphasizing the scale of the effort to curb the virus’s spread.
Polio eradication efforts in Pakistan face significant hurdles, including parental refusals, vaccine hesitancy, widespread misinformation and attacks on vaccination teams by militant groups. In remote and volatile regions, vaccination teams often require police protection, though security personnel have also been targeted in attacks. The oral polio vaccine, administered in repeated doses to children under five during campaigns, remains the only effective defense against the disease, alongside timely routine immunizations.
“Polio eradication is a collective responsibility,” the polio program said in a statement. “While dedicated frontline polio workers deliver vaccines, parents and caregivers must ensure their children receive all recommended doses, including routine immunizations.”
The October campaign aims to bolster immunity and curb the virus’s spread. “These campaigns are designed to rapidly strengthen immunity and enhance protection as part of ongoing efforts to eradicate polio from Pakistan,” the polio program said. “Vaccination remains the only effective protection against lifelong disability.”
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