The Union government has selected six districts in Karnataka to be part of the 201 high focus districts in the country for achieving full immunisation coverage of all children and pregnant women, out of which five are in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region.
Ballari, Kalaburagi, Koppal, Raichur, Yadgir and Bengaluru (Urban) are the selected districts in the State. Nearly 50 per cent of all the unvaccinated and partially vaccinated children in India as well as in Karnataka were living in the high-focus districts selected for implementation of what has been named ‘Indradhanush’.
Kalaburagi District Deputy Commissioner Vipul Bansal told presspersons here on Saturday that Indradhanush, representing seven colours, would cover seven childhood diseases (providing seven antigens/vaccines to the during the drive).
Each round under the programme would run for seven days in a month from April to July and the drive would be launched on April 7, the World Health Day.
Mr. Bansal said that intensified immunisation campaigns in the selected districts would help reduce morbidity and mortality due to disease that can be prevented by vaccines.
The universal immunisation programme launched in 1985 failed in its objective to achieve full immunisation coverage and as per the latest details, only 65 per cent immunisation has been achieved, resulting in the country facing a risk of resurfacing of polio, alongside high morbidity and mortality among children due to vaccine-preventable diseases: diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), tetanus, polio, tuberculosis, measles and hepatitis B.
Mr. Bansal said that under Mission Indradhanush, a new approach – of providing complete package of solutions for achieving high quality routine immunisation coverage through collaborative process involving all the major stakeholders – has been adopted. Immunisation drive of children and pregnant women would be undertaken on April 7, 8, 10, 11, 13, 15 and 17.
Apart from establishing 1,178 vaccination centres throughout the district, 26 mobile teams have been prepared to cover 11.03 lakh children and pregnant women. Out of the total 11.03 lakh eligible children and pregnant women, there are 22,657 children below the age of two and 5,481 pregnant women.
22,657 children below the age of two and 5,481 pregnant women have been identified in Kalaburagi
