- Around 17 crore children of less than 5 years of age will be given polio drops in the next three days till Feb 2.
- The Polio drive will be held in adherence to Covid-19 protocol and guidelines.
Edited By Sanchari Ghosh
Updated
31 Jan 2021, 10:15 AM IST
President Shri Ram Nath Kovind launched the Pulse Polio Programme for 2021 on Saturday evening by administering polio drops to children less than five years old at the Rashtrapati Bhawan.
Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Dr. Harsh Vardhan and Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Ashwini Kumar Choubey were also present at the event.
Tomorrow is Polio vaccination day also known as the National Immunisation Day or #PolioRavivar https://t.co/iwNRzlsYII
— All India Radio News (@airnewsalerts) January 30, 2021
At the event, Harsh Vardhan said, “The strategy of Pulse Polio Immunization Programme was conceived in December 1993 and it was rolled out from 2nd October, 1994 when the first child was immunized against Polio as part of this programme.”
“Almost 12 lakh children were immunized in a single day at around 4000 centres. In 1995, seeing the visible impact of the Pulse Polio Programme in Delhi, this was replicated at the national level. A year later, several countries of South East Asia region of WHO emulated the strategy and implemented similar programs. Even in Africa, Mr. Nelson Mandela launched ‘Kick Polio out of Africa’ campaign.”
Later the president tweeted: President Kovind launches the first round of Pulse Polio Programme 2021 by administering Polio drops to children at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Here are the things that you need to know:
- Polio National Immunization Day, which is observed today, is also popularly known as Polio Ravivar.
- However, the immunization drive will continue for the next three days till Feb 2.
- The Polio drive will be held in adherence to Covid-19 protocol and guidelines. At the centres, it is mandatory to maintain physical distance, to wear masks and wash hands during the activity.
- Around 17 crore children of less than 5 years of age will be given polio drops as part of the drive
- Healthcare workers will be visiting as many as 2 crore households to ensure that no child is left without the protection of the polio vaccine.
What different states are doing:
Uttar Pradesh
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday morning will kick off the polio immunisation campaign 2021 for the state. At the hospital, he will give polio drops to several children.
An official release said the campaign will subsequently start across all the districts in the state.
Madhya Pradesh
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launches Pulse Polio Programme in the state by administering polio drops to children less than five years of age at an event in Bhopal.
“Our target is to administer the polio drops to 1 crore and 11 lakh children,” he says.
Karnataka
Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa administers polio drops to children less than five years of age in Bengaluru hopital to launch Pulse Polio Programme in the state.
Rotary Club which is supporting the three-day drive said India has safeguarded its children for over 10 years since the last wild polio case was reported in January 2011 by ensuring that all children throughout the country are vaccinated twice each year to stay protected from polio.
“Thanks to unwavering political commitment, intense polio surveillance, an intricate network of vaccinators and community mobilizers, focused measures for high-risk areas/populations, and robust communication strategies, India has maintained high immunisation coverage and remains polio-free,” said Deepak Kapur, Chairman, Rotary International’s India PolioPlus Committee.
He added, however, we must always remember that as long as polio exists anywhere, it still remains a threat everywhere, so it’s imperative that till the time poliovirus is eliminated from the face of the earth, we continue to get our children immunized.