The latest polio cases in Pakistan now total seven for 2026, after the National Emergency Operations Center for Polio Eradication (NEOC) said on Monday that a six-month-old boy in Karachi East had been diagnosed with polio. It is the first case reported in Karachi in a long gap, and officials are using it to press parents to make sure their children are vaccinated. The NEOC coordinates the national response to the disease.
Where the cases are
Of the seven cases recorded nationally this year, five are in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including four in the province's southern districts, and two are in Sindh. The child in Karachi lives in Union Council Jamali Colony, a local administrative unit in Karachi East. The case was found through the polio surveillance network, which tracks the disease through testing, and was confirmed by the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health in Islamabad.
Reports differ on how long the gap has been: one put it at more than 1.5 years, while another said nearly two years. The NEOC said the last case from Karachi was recorded in December 2024. It also said Karachi has continued to show detections of wild poliovirus in environmental samples throughout 2026, which it said keeps the risk of transmission alive.
Vaccination drive and next steps
Set against the past, the latest polio cases in Pakistan show a sharp fall: from an estimated 20,000 cases in the early 1990s to 31 in 2025 and seven so far in 2026. The country has held four nationwide vaccination campaigns this year, covering over 45 million children on several occasions, along with targeted drops and injections in high-risk areas. A round held in September, at subnational level, reached over 29.3 million children.
The next campaign runs from November 2 to 8, with every Karachi district part of the plan. Polio spreads easily and can cause permanent paralysis or, in some cases, death. There is no cure, so vaccination is the main protection. The NEOC has asked parents to make sure every child under five receives the doses in each campaign and completes routine immunisation, and it has asked communities, religious leaders and the media to counter false information about vaccines.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- December 2024: the last polio case in Karachi, according to the NEOC.
- 2025: 31 polio cases recorded in Pakistan.
- September: a subnational round reached over 29.3 million children.
- 2026: four nationwide campaigns held so far.
- 2026: the seventh case, from Karachi East, announced by the NEOC.
- November 2 to 8: next campaign planned, targeting nearly 24 million children.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Karachi East mein polio ka naya case saamne aaya hai, jo shehar mein lagbhag do saal baad aaya hai. Is saal ab tak Pakistan mein saat polio cases report hue hain. Iska matlab hai ke har bachay ko polio ke qatre har campaign mein pilana zaroori hai. Under-five bachon ke parents 2 se 8 November ki campaign mein zaroor shamil hon.
