Health teams initiate 3-day pulse polio drive

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, January 19

The three-day pulse polio immunisation round was initiated by Health Department teams in Amritsar and Tarn Taran on Sunday. Civil Surgeon Dr Parabdeep Kaur Johal inaugurated the drive from the Golden Temple Complex and flagged off an awareness rally to make the public aware of the pulse polio immunisation drive.

District Immunisation Officer Dr Rameshpal Singh said the department estimated 3,12,665 children below the age of 5 years in the district. “We have constituted 2,761 teams for door-to-door campaign and deputed 287 supervisors for monitoring the drive.”

The drive would conclude on Tuesday and health teams would administer polio drops to immunise children below the age of 5 years. Despite dense fog and biting cold, parents gave overwhelming response to the polio campaign. The department had established model polio booths at various sites.

Meanwhile, in Tarn Taran district, the drive was inaugurated by MLA Dr Dharambeer Agnihotri here at the local Civil Hospital. Deputy Commissioner Pardeep Kumar Sabharwal, District Immunisation Officer Dr Suman Kumar Wadhawan, District Family Welfare Officer Dr Sumit Singh and Civil Surgeon Dr Anoop Kumar presided over the event.

The Deputy Commissioner said over 1.5 lakh children from 0 to 5 year age would be administered polio drops by the teams. He said 1,209 teams had been constituted with 149 supervisors and certain social organisations too were extending their cooperation in the drive.

The Civil Surgeon said, “The department has estimated 1,47,652 children below the age of 5 years in the district and they have covered more than 55 per cent on the first day.” As many as 635 booths, 1,209 house to house teams, 31 transit teams and 48 mobile teams were constituted, and 2,715 vaccinators and 149 supervisors were deputed for monitoring the drive, he said.

He said, “We need to be careful as more than 117 cases of polio in Pakistan and 26 cases in Afghanistan have been reported in the past year. Apart from houses, our teams will cover sites like brick kiln, nomads and construction sites in the district. Our objective is to achieve 100 per cent vaccination in the district.”