Parents Declining Polio Vaccination May Face Fines or Imprisonment
The Deputy Commissioner of Hyderabad has announced fines for parents who refuse to vaccinate their children against polio.
As per the notification, Deputy Commissioner Tariq Qureshi has been granted authority under Section 1 to impose fines. In addition to fines, parents declining polio vaccination for their children could face potential imprisonment.
The notification specifies that such parents will be fined Rs. 50,000 and may be imprisoned for up to a month. The Deputy Commissioner urges the public to support the government’s polio eradication efforts by ensuring their children receive vaccination.
It is noteworthy that a nationwide vaccination campaign targeting over 24 million children under five years old against poliovirus commenced yesterday.
During the campaign, children will receive vaccination in Islamabad, 10 districts of Punjab, 24 districts of Sindh, 26 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and 30 districts of Balochistan.
According to PM’s Coordinator on National Health Services Dr. Malik Mukhtar Ahmed Bharath, poliovirus has been detected in multiple sewage samples in recent months. He emphasizes that polio prevention is only possible through administering polio drops to children.
