Pakistan has reported its ninth polio case of 2026, with the latest infection confirmed in Khyber district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) said on Thursday, 5 November 2026.
The affected child is a seven-month-old boy from Mastak union council in Bara tehsil. It is the third case from Khyber district this year and the seventh from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The virus found in all three cases from the district has genetic linkages to Afghanistan, which has reported 50 cases this year, pointing to continued cross-border circulation of the virus.
The NEOC stressed the need for consistent vaccination, particularly during the ongoing nationwide campaign, which is being conducted simultaneously in Pakistan and Afghanistan as part of coordinated cross-border eradication efforts. "The case is a stark reminder that poliovirus knows no borders and no child anywhere will be safe from polio until every child is safe, and poliovirus transmission has stopped completely," the centre said in its statement.
Pakistan is one of the last two countries in the world, alongside Afghanistan, where polio remains endemic. The disease is highly infectious and incurable, and it can cause lifelong paralysis.
Of the nine cases reported in Pakistan this year, seven are from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and two from Sindh. The eighth case of the year was reported only on Sunday, in a 13-month-old girl, also from Khyber district. The centre said that while overall wild poliovirus transmission had declined this year, the Peshawar block — comprising Khyber and Peshawar districts and bordering Afghanistan — and neighbouring districts in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa continued to report virus detections, including cases.
A door-to-door vaccination campaign is currently underway in 97 districts across the country, aiming to immunise nearly 24 million children under the age of five. The campaign runs from 2 to 8 November.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called for a coordinated strategy with the provinces to ensure the complete eradication of polio from the country, directing the authorities concerned to prepare an action plan within a week. Chairing a meeting in Islamabad to review progress on polio eradication, the prime minister expressed concern over the recent cases and said the government must intensify its efforts to eliminate the disease.
"Achieving a polio-free Pakistan is a major challenge. However, our resolve and morale are far stronger than this challenge," he said, stressing close consultations with the provinces and all stakeholders to devise a joint strategy.
The prime minister directed the federal minister and minister of state for health, the health secretary and members of the polio eradication team to visit all four provinces and meet their chief ministers and chief secretaries. He also directed the authorities to improve routine immunisation coverage across the country, with a particular focus on polio-affected areas and regions of concern.
Appreciating the efforts of frontline polio workers and law enforcement agencies in ensuring the successful conduct of vaccination campaigns, the prime minister said providing security and uninterrupted access to vaccination teams was the government's top priority. He commended the improvement in access for vaccination campaigns in security-sensitive and challenging areas.
The meeting was told that cross-border movement from Afghanistan was a major factor contributing to the spread of the virus in Pakistan. It was also briefed that no new polio case had been reported from Punjab since February 2025, while Balochistan reported no cases in 2025 and 2026. Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan remained polio-free, and the quantity of poliovirus detected in environmental samples from Sindh had declined this year.
The meeting was further informed that measures were being taken to improve the security of vaccination teams and ensure better access in the southern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Sources: Dawn, Geo News.
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ROMAN URDU VERSION:
Pakistan mein 2026 ka nawa polio case report hua hai — taza infection Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ke zila Khyber mein confirm hua, National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) ne jumeraat, 5 November 2026 ko bataya.
Mutasira bacha Bara tehsil ki union council Mastak ka saat mah ka ladka hai. Ye is saal Khyber zila ka teesra aur Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ka saatwan case hai. Zila ke teeno cases mein paya gaya virus Afghanistan se munsalik hai, jahan is saal 50 cases report hue hain — is se sarhad paar virus ki gardish ka pata chalta hai.
NEOC ne musalsal vaccination par zor diya, khaas tor par jari mulk-geer muhim ke doran, jo Pakistan aur Afghanistan mein beek waqt sarhad-paar khatme ki koshishon ke tehat chalai ja rahi hai. Centre ne apne bayan mein kaha, "Ye case ek sakht yaad-dihani hai ke poliovirus sarhadon ko nahi janta aur koi bacha bhi polio se mehfooz nahi hoga jab tak har bacha mehfooz na ho aur poliovirus ki muntaqili poori tarah na ruk jaye."
Pakistan duniya ke aakhri do mumalik mein se ek hai, Afghanistan ke saath, jahan polio ab bhi mojood hai. Ye beemari shadeed muta'addi aur la-ilaaj hai aur zindagi bhar ki mazoor ka sabab ban sakti hai.
Is saal Pakistan mein report honay walay nau cases mein se saat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa se aur do Sindh se hain. Is saal ka aathwan case sirf itwaar ko report hua tha — 13 mah ki bachi, wo bhi Khyber zila se. Centre ne kaha ke is saal majmooi tor par wild poliovirus ki muntaqili mein kami aayi hai, lekin Peshawar block — jis mein Khyber aur Peshawar azla aur Afghanistan se mutasil ilaqay shamil hain — aur janubi Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ke qareebi azla mein virus ki maujoodgi musalsal report ho rahi hai.
Is waqt mulk bhar ke 97 azla mein ghar ghar vaccination muhim jari hai, jis ka hadaf paanch saal se kam umar ke taqreeban 24 million bachon ko vaccine lagana hai. Ye muhim 2 se 8 November tak chalegi.
Isi doran Wazir-e-Azam Shehbaz Sharif ne soobon ke saath mil kar mulk se polio ke mukammal khatme ke liye marboot hikmat-e-amli ka mutalba kiya hai aur mutalliqah hakaam ko aik haftay ke andar action plan tayyar karne ki hidayat di hai. Islamabad mein polio ke khatme par paish-raft ka jaiza lene wale ijlaas ki sadarat karte hue Wazir-e-Azam ne haaliya cases par tashweesh ka izhar kiya aur kaha ke hukumat ko is beemari ke khatme ke liye koshishain tez karni hongi.
"Polio se pak Pakistan ka hasool aik bara challenge hai. Lekin hamara azm aur hosla is challenge se kahin zyada mazboot hai," unhon ne kaha aur soobon aur tamam stakeholders se qareebi mashawarat par zor diya.
Wazir-e-Azam ne wafaqi wazir aur wazir-e-mumlikat baraye sehat, sehat secretary aur polio eradication team ke arkaan ko chaaron soobon ka dora karne aur wahan ke wuzara-e-aala aur chief secretaries se milne ki hidayat di. Unhon ne hakaam ko ye bhi hidayat di ke mulk bhar mein, khaas tor par polio se mutasira ilaqon mein, routine immunisation ki coverage behtar ki jaye.
Wazir-e-Azam ne frontline polio workers aur qanoon naafiz karne walay idaron ki koshishon ko saraha aur kaha ke vaccination teams ko security aur bila rukawat rasai dena hukumat ki awwaleen tarjeeh hai. Unhon ne security ke lihaz se hasaas aur mushkil ilaqon mein vaccination muhimon tak rasai mein behtari ko bhi saraha.
Ijlaas ko bataya gaya ke Afghanistan se sarhad paar aamad-o-raft Pakistan mein virus ke phailao ka aik bara sabab hai. Ijlaas ko ye bhi bataya gaya ke Punjab se February 2025 ke baad koi naya polio case report nahi hua, jabke Balochistan mein 2025 aur 2026 mein koi case nahi aaya. Azad Jammu-o-Kashmir aur Gilgit-Baltistan polio se pak rahay, aur Sindh se maholiyati namoonon mein paye gaye poliovirus ki miqdar is saal kam hui hai.
Ijlaas ko mazeed bataya gaya ke Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ke janubi azla mein vaccination teams ki security behtar banane aur behtar rasai yaqeeni banane ke iqdamat kiye ja rahe hain.
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