Pulse Polio

Pulse Polio is an immunisation campaign established by the government of India to eliminate poliomyelitis (polio) in India by vaccinating all children under the age of five years against the polio virus. The project fights poliomyelitis through a large-scale pulse vaccination programme and monitoring for polio cases.

The Pulse Polio dates in 2017 are 29 January and 2 April on Sundays.

In India, vaccination against polio started in 1978 with Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI). By 1984, it covered around 40% of infants, giving three doses of OPV to each.

In 1985, the Universal Immunisation Program (UIP) was launched to cover all the districts of the country. UIP became a part of child survival and safe motherhood program (CSSM) in 1992 and Reproductive and Child Health Program (RCH) in 1997. This program led to a significant increase in coverage, up to 95%. The number of reported cases of polio also declined from 28,757 during 1987 to 3,265 in 1995.

In 1995, following the Global Polio Eradication Initiative of the World Health Organization (1988), India launched Pulse Polio immunisation program with Universal Immunization Program which aimed at 100% coverage.

The last reported cases of wild polio in India were in West Bengal and Gujarat on 13 January 2011. On 27 March 2014, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared India a polio free country, since no cases of wild polio had been reported in for three years.

As of mid-2016, only Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan have wild polio cases.

The Pulse Polio Initiative (PPI) aims at covering every individual in the country. It aspires to reach even children in remote communities through an improved social mobilisation plan.

Publicity was extensive and included replacing the national telecoms' authority ringtone with a vaccination day awareness message, posters, TV and cinema spots, parades, rallies, and one-to-one communication from volunteers. Vaccination booths were set up, with a house-to-house campaign for remote communities.

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