Nadda calls for complete immunization of children, pregnant women against polio virus

In the backdrop of some vials of the oral polio vaccines being found contaminated with the type-2 poliovirus, Health Minister J P Nadda Tuesday urged state ministers and officials to ensure no children and pregnant women were left out of the routine immunisation program.

He was reviewing the preparedness for the upcoming rounds of Mission Indradhanush (MI) with health ministers and principal secretaries of 17 states and UTs through video conferencing.

Nadda issued clear directions and exhorted them to ensure that children and pregnant women left out of the routine immunisation program in the country were provided full protection under this initiative.

"We are fully confident of achieving the ambitious target of 90 per cent full immunisation coverage in the country as set by the prime minister," he said.

Three rounds of immunisation drives, of seven working days each, excluding routine immunisation days, Sundays and holidays, were planned in 75 districts.

The first round would be from October 22, while the second round would be from November 22 and the third round would be from December 22.

Some vials of the oral polio vaccines contaminated with the type-2 poliovirus were administered to children in Maharashtra and Telangana, besides Uttar Pradesh, Health Ministry officials had confirmed.

The vials were manufactured by a Ghaziabad-based pharmaceutical company.

Nadda said the special focus should be given on identification of unvaccinated and partially vaccinated children and pregnant women in high-risk, hard-to-reach areas like hamlets, brick kilns, tribal areas, forest areas, construction sites, migrant settlements, vacant sub-centres, urban slums etc.

He said head-count survey by ASHAs and Anganwadi workers should be undertaken to cover all such areas and a sample verification of survey should be done by ANMs/ supervisors.

Stressing on the need for need-based plans, the health minister said micro plans should be prepared on the basis of the estimated number of beneficiaries (through a head-count survey) and distances from cold chain points.

He also laid emphasis on awareness generation activities for increasing awareness on benefits of immunisation and alleviating apprehensions of 'Adverse Events Following Immunisation (AEFI)'.

He also emphasised on the need for regular review of planning and implementation of all three rounds of MI and it should be done in state and district task force meetings to identify gaps in implementation and their resolution in a de-centralised manner.

Mission Indradhanush (MI) is one of the flagship schemes of the government that aims at achieving full immunisation coverage (FIC) of 99 per cent by December through a focus on unvaccinated and partially vaccinated children and pregnant women in pockets of low immunisation coverage, high-risk and hard-to-reach areas.

A total of five phases of Mission Indradhanush have been completed between April 2015 and February 2018 covering 537 districts.

(With inputs from agencies.)