KATHMANDU: The polio virus has resurfaced in Nepal after a decade. It was found in drain water in Kathmandu. During an interaction organized by the Department of Health Services on 'Polio Disease and Surveillance' on Friday, Chief of the Child Health and Nutrition Division, Dr. Abhiyan Gautam, said the poliovirus was found in the water at the confluence of Tukucha and Bagmati rivers.

A sample collected from the confluence tested positive for the poliovirus, marking the first time the virus was detected in drain water. Nepal had last witnessed this virus in humans in 2010, while the country was declared polio-free in 2014. The government had aimed at eradicating the poliovirus by 2026.

"Irrespective of the place this virus is found, it is quite sensitive. Tracing the poliovirus has raised concerns about whether humans also have it," Dr. Gautam explained. He further informed that additional tests would be conducted.

The sample collected on May 26 was sent to a Bangkok-based laboratory for testing, which resulted positive. The result came on July 13.

It was also shared in the program that the new variant of the virus is 'vaccine-derived polio type-3,' not 'wild polio.'

"It might not have come from elsewhere but from Kathmandu Valley itself because it was found at Teku, the confluence of Tukucha and Bagmati rivers," Dr. Gautam argued.

With the detection of the virus after a decade, the Ministry of Health and Population has decided to launch an anti-polio campaign in all three districts of the valley. Director at the Family Welfare Division, Dr. Bibek Kumar Lal, said 'IPV' vaccination was launched against polio recently. Under the vaccination campaign, a total of 280,000 children will be administered anti-polio vaccination from July 24 to 27. -- RSS