Religious clerics belonging to the core group of the National Research and Development Foundation (NRDF) on Sunday urged local communities to get their children below five years vaccinated against polio so that the country could be rid of the crippling disease of by the end of 2012. Separate community meetings were organised by the NRDF in Shamshi Khan and Bajauro Talash that were attended by local elders and notables of the areas. The NRDF district core group members Maulana Zahid Khan addressed the meeting at Bajauro while Mufti Khalid Mehmood addressed the meeting at Shamshi Khan. NRDF District Coordinator Muhammad Abdullah briefed the participants about efforts to end polio in the region. The religious clerics said polio had been a major problem in the country. They said the Pakistanis would have to face difficulties during Haj and Umra if the country was not made polio-free. “Islam does not oppose medical treatment to prevent diseases,” Khali said, adding that awareness about the disease would be spread through Friday sermons and mosque announcements. He said the public should extend full cooperation to the Health Department in eradicating polio from the region. The NRDF coordinator said that next campaign against polio would be started in selected union councils of Dir Lower from March 12.