PESHAWAR: The Provincial Education Minister Muhammad Atif Khan has said that around 34000 children move to government schools from private schools due to effective reforms of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI).

Atif Khan lauded the current drove of reforms in education sector which has restored the trust of the parents over the government schools in the past few years.

He was presiding over the Elementary Education Foundation board of directors meeting at Peshawar here on Monday. Special Secretary Education QaiserAlam, and other officials of the education and managing directors were also present on the occasion.

Atif Khan was briefed about the ongoing programs under the foundation including Girls Community schools, IqraFerogh-i-Taleem, Voucher scheme, Tameer School and Rokhana Pakhtunkhwa.

The meeting observed that foundation will achieve its target with end of this year as like it has been it for the last three years. The aim of the present government to give free and compulsory quality education to all children of the province without any impediments from the government side Atif maintained at the meeting.

He said that with proper and quality education populace cannot understand the interest of their nations and cannot play its active role in nation building. Atif lauded that education department of KP has initiated the transformation policy has got recognition and respect in home and abroad and other provinces now following the footprint of the province to reforms their education departments.

Polio: Tremendous success has been made in combating polio but our mission is not to decrease polio cases but to eradicate the disease from the region for good, said Shahram Khan Tarakai, Senior Minister Health Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He said while inaugurating eight day long Inactivated Polio Vaccination (IPV) campaign here on Monday at Police and General Services Hospital Peshawar. Coordinator EOC Akbar Khan, Polio Team Leader Dr Johar Khan, Technical Focal person BMGF Dr Imtiaz, Dr Shoaib, Area Coordinator WHO Dr IIlauddin were also present on the occasion.

Shahram Khan said that the efforts of the government and partners were paying off as polio cases were on decline in the province and IPV campaign was part of the plan to boost immunity of children and give final blow to polio.

Inactivated polio vaccination (IPV) campaign has been kicked off in five central districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa including Peshawar, Charsadda, Mardan, Nowshera and Swabi wherein 4 to 23 months old children will be given IPV shots, he said adding that total target of the campaign was 615370.

Senior Minister asked media to support the government in community mobilization and raising public awareness with specific focus on parents’ sensitization to immunize their children against polio and other vaccine preventable diseases.

Earlier, Senior Paediatrician and former president of Pakistan Paediatric Association (PPA) Dr Ashfaq inaugurated IPV campaign at Khyber Teaching Hospital Peshawar.

Sharing his views on the occasion, Dr Ashfaq said that polio vaccine was completely safe and asked parents not to pay heed to malicious propaganda against the vaccine as there was nothing haram and harmful in it.

He asked media persons to play their due role in raising public awareness to the level where people come to the health centers for vaccination instead of teams going door to door.

Giving brief history of the disease, he said that polio was an ancient disease which spread from person to person and oral polio vaccine along with IPV was the only cure.

He said that the programme was started 50 years back by him in the province and hoped that he will watch the day when the country will be polio free. Director EPI Dr Hameed Afridi said that Peshawar was polio free for the last one year which indicate the hard efforts of the government and all the stakeholders.

He said that good EPI system can ensure sustained successes in polio eradication initiative. EOC Coordinator KPa Akbar Khan said that due to government’s ownership polio virus has been curtailed to three blocks including KP Block, Karachi and Quetta blocks while virus transmission has been stopped in other parts of the country.

He said that Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs) have been established in the country with a view to provide one roof to government and all partners so as to launch serious efforts on war footing bases against the crippling disease.