Prime Minister Imran Khan Monday launched the National Anti-Polio drive with a goal to rid the country of the crippling disease.

The prime minister administered the drops of anti-polio vaccine to children aging below five years at his Office.

The federal government has chalked out a comprehensive national emergency programme against polio, which is being carried out across the country in joint collaboration with the provinces.

The special polio campaign is taking place in 124 districts of the country from today onwards.

During the drive, polio teams will administer vaccine drops to over 33 million children under five-year age.

The provincial health departments have appealed to the parents to get their children vaccinated against the poliovirus.

The PM also chaired a meeting of the National Anti-Polio Task Force which was attended by KP Governor Shah Farman, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, KP Chief Minister Mehmood Khan Special Assistant to PM Dr. Faisal Sultan, Dr. Shehbaz Gill, and others. The meeting was told that due to the efforts of the present government, only one case of polio has been reported in the last year. However, the campaign has been launched at a larger scale to ensure access to all children in the country.