Some respite in Sisyphean quest to end polio in Karachi

KARACHI: They are foot soldiers. Their only weapon: polio drops in a small blue icebox with an ice pack to keep the vaccine cool, even though they themselves may be sweating and exhausted in the scorching heat. These health workers (mostly women as they are allowed inside homes) fight for the eradication of polio in Pakistan, one of only two polio-endemic countries in the world alongside Afghanistan. Sadly, in both Pakistan and Afghanistan, the fight against the crippling disease has run into rumours and misinformation, especially among the uneducated. Many not just refuse to let their…