KARACHI: A seven-day anti-polio campaign aiming to inoculate 7.4 million children in 22 districts of Sindh will be launched from August 2, a statement issued on Friday said.

A meeting of the Provincial Task Force on Polio Eradication chaired by Sindh Chief Secretary Mumtaz Ali Shah was informed that more than 50,000 polio workers in the 22 districts will be part of this special vaccination drive, according to Shah's spokesperson Farhat Imtiaz.

Health department officials told the meeting that as many as 535,111 surgical masks and 63,643 hand sanitisers had been provided to the polio workers keeping in view the coronavirus pandemic.

They said special attention was being paid to the Karachi division in this campaign and 32 health camps would be set up at different places in the city.

During the meeting, Chief Secretary Shah expressed relief that no case of polio had been reported in Sindh in the last one year.

He directed the deputy commissioners to achieve 100 per cent target of the polio campaign, saying their performances would be reflected in their annual evaluation reports.

Shah, who kicked off the polio campaign by administering drops to children at his office, appealed to parents to cooperate with the polio workers and vaccinate children up to five years of age.

"The role of social mobilisers and influencers should be made more effective to persuade parents who previously refused polio drops," he was quoted as saying.

He said the polio campaign would not be affected by the province-wide coronavirus lockdown announced on Friday.

Because both parents and children will be at home due to the lockdown, it is the right time for children to be vaccinated against the poliovirus, the chief secretary added.