Maharashtra: Palghar Zilla Parishad temporarily suspends use of 4 vaccines following infant's death

The Palghar Zilla Parishad has temporarily suspended specific vaccine batches following the death of a two-month-old infant after routine immunisation, despite preliminary findings suggesting no direct connection.

The Palghar Zilla Parishad's health department has temporarily suspended the use of specific batches of four vaccines as a precautionary measure following the death of a two-month-old infant after routine immunisation, even though preliminary findings suggest no direct connection.

According to the official release on Monday, the infant from the Ghanwal area of Mokhada taluka was brought to the Sub-District Hospital in Jawhar for routine vaccination on May 20.

''The child's condition deteriorated post-vaccination, and treatment was immediately initiated. However, the child passed away during treatment the following day,'' the release stated.

Following the incident, the family members expressed doubts regarding the vaccines and demanded a thorough probe, it said.

Taking serious cognisance of the Adverse Event Following Immunisation (AEFI), District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Santosh Chaudhary issued an order to all Taluka Health Officers and Medical Officers in the district to immediately halt the use of the specific vaccine batches until further orders.

The suspended vaccine batches include Pentavalent, Rotavirus, Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV), and Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV).

Dr Chaudhary, however, clarified that 24 other children were administered doses from the exact same vaccine batches, and prima facie, the death of the infant does not appear to be directly related to the vaccination.

''A thorough investigation is underway, and the exact cause of death will be clear only after the medical examination and post-mortem reports are received,'' the DHO said, appealing to citizens not to believe in rumours.