Five polio cases detected in Bihar

Five new cases of polio have been detected in Bihar in the first two months of this year despite immunisation drive, an official in the state health department said on Saturday.

This is three less than in Uttar Pradesh, which has had the highest incidence of the infection during 2008, a Unicef official said.

"It is sad to admit that five new polio cases surfaced in the state till the end of February," the Bihar health official, who declined to be named, said.

The figures have raised an alarm across Bihar as many parents fear that their children might also catch the disease.

The Unicef official said of the five polio cases, two are P1 and three are P3 strain cases. "The detection of two new cases of P1 is a matter of serious concern," he added.

He said eight new cases of polio have been detected in Uttar Pradesh and one in Delhi till Feb 27. Of the eight cases in Uttar Pradesh, four are of P1 and P3 each.

The battle against polio is far from over in Bihar, which recorded the second highest incidence of the disease in India last year after neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.

Bihar recorded 233 new polio cases in 2008, one of the highest since the polio immunisation drive was launched in the state nearly a decade ago, an official had said.

Bihar recorded 61 polio cases in 2006 and 193 cases in 2007.link