Sunday is for polio vaccination

Pune: An estimated 10 lakh children below the age of five will be administered oral polio vaccine as part of the nation-wide immunization drive on January 18. Over 16,400 health staff will carry out the drive in Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad and rural parts.
There are nearly 4.8 lakh children in the rural areas of Pune, 3.3 lakh children in municipal limits of Pune and 2.1 lakh in the municipal limits of Pimpri Chinchwad who can benefit from the drive.
“About 1.34 crore children will be administered oral polio vaccine in Maharashtra. Of them, 10 lakh children are from Pune district including Pune city and Pimpri Chinchwad,” said a state health official.
Around 84,387 booths will be made functional across the state and a financial assistance of Rs 12.63 crore has been approved by the central government. “We are using banners, posters, pamphlets, hoarding to sensitize people and are also using the television and radio to create awareness about the polio vaccination drive,” said additional collector Pradip Patil adding, “Pune district is ready for the drive. We are making sure that there is sufficient manpower.”
Though the country has been polio-free in the last four years, the health authorities in a bid to ensure sustained efforts to vaccinate children below five years against polio carry out the supplementary drive twice a year in January and February The drive will be taken up in referral hospitals, maternity hospitals, family welfare centres in city, anganwadis, health centres, malls, railway and bus stations, halls and housing societies.
Not a single case of polio has been register after the last case in Nashik in 2010. According to the statistics provided by the health authorities, there will be mobile and transit booths so that all children are covered during the drive.