Breaking News English

The World Health Organization (WHO) has [announced / announcement] for the first time that South-East Asia is now [freely / free] from polio. The WHO certified 11 countries as being clear of the [killer / killing] disease. The WHO website said: "This is the [four / fourth] of six WHO regions to be certified, marking an important step towards global eradication of polio – a highly infectious [viral / virus] that attacks the [nervous / nervousness] system and can cause total [paralysed / paralysis] in a matter of hours. With this step, 80 per cent of the world's population [now / current] lives in certified polio-free regions." One of the newly-certified countries is India, which as recently [was / as] 2009, was home to almost 50 per cent of the world's polio cases. India hasn't seen a [single / singular] polio case for the last three years.

Polio is currently an [incumbent / incurable] disease. It leads to paralysis of the [lambs / limbs] and eventually kills anyone who [contracts / contacts] it. Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, regional [direction / director] for the WHO, said: "This is a [momentous / moments] victory for the millions of health workers who have worked with governments, non-governmental organizations, [civilian / civil] society and international partners to eradicate polio from the [regionally / region] ." She added: "It is a sign of what we can [bequeath / beneath] our children when we work together." Dr Singh also cautioned against becoming [complacent / combatant] in the fight against the disease. She said: "Until polio is globally eradicated, all countries are at risk and the region's polio-free status remains [fragile / futile] ."