LAHORE: A three-day anti-polio drive in Punjab will start today. “Though Punjab has had no case last year, persistent circulation of virus means good job has to continue,” Punjab Minister for Primary and Secondary Healthcare Khawaja Imran Nazir said. He added that the department had constituted over 44,000 teams in the province, including 37,845 mobile teams, 4,439 fixed teams and 2,370 transit teams to administer polio drops the children under five. At least 20 polio cases were reported last year in Pakistan with eight each in Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, two each in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Balochistan. Punjab’s Emergency Operation Coordinator Dr Munir Ahmed has said recent environmental samples have been a cause of concern indicating the presence of virus in the environment. “There were positive samples in Rawalpindi, Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan and DG Khan in Punjab,” he said, adding: “We are trying to reach out to mobile and migrant population coming from polio affected areas. In case of teams not reaching any area, parents may contact helpline 0800 99000.”