Karnataka on Sunday launched a statewide pulse polio immunisation drive, with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman administering oral polio vaccine drops to children at separate locations.
Siddaramaiah inaugurated the campaign at his official residence ‘Kaveri’ in Bengaluru, accompanied by Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao and Home Minister G Parameshwara. Sitharaman, who is in the state to attend a Chintan Shivir in Vijayanagara district, launched the drive at Kamalapura by administering polio drops to children below five years of age.
In a post on X, Sitharaman said the initiative reaffirmed the government’s commitment to safeguarding child health and ensuring a polio-free India. She added that the drive reflected a collective effort to protect future generations through timely immunisation.
Also read: Sitharaman launches AI, STEM labs in Karnataka govt schools
According to the state health department, around 62.4 lakh children have been identified for vaccination during this round. Under the routine immunisation programme, every child is given five doses of Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) and three doses of Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV).
Special emphasis will be placed on reaching children in villages, hilly regions, brick kilns, migrant settlements, slums, farmhouses and urban poor areas. Vaccination booths have also been set up at railway stations, metro stations, airports and seaports.
To carry out the campaign, the department has established 33,258 booths and deployed 1,030 mobile teams, 2,096 transit teams, over 1.13 lakh vaccinators and 7,322 supervisors.
Health officials urged parents to ensure that all children below five years of age receive the vaccine on Sunday, stressing that the drops are safe and that rumours surrounding polio vaccination should be ignored.
Follow us
