Over 96K Chandigarh kids to be given polio drops

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Chandigarh, February 10

As many as 96,831 children up to the age of five years will be covered in the city during the Pulse Polio campaign to be conducted from February 27 to March 1.

While polio drops will be administered at 454 fixed booths on the first day of the drive, 981 teams will visit every house on two subsequent days to reach out to the left-out children.

A task force meeting of the Chandigarh Administration in this regard was held today under the chairmanship of Health Secretary Yashpal Garg.

Representatives of various departments, including experts from the WHO, the PGI, the GMCH-32, the Indian Medical Association and the Indian Academy of Paediatrics, participated in the meeting.

In addition, 13 transit points would be functional at crowded places like Rock Garden, Sukhna Lake, Rose Garden, bus stands, interstate border, etc. A total of 148 high risk areas like construction sites, nomadic clusters, slums, etc, have been identified. An initiative of night vigil teams, ‘Taare Zameen Par’, will cover night shelters and homeless population.

The WHO will deploy independent monitors to supervise the activities. Keeping in mind the safety of vaccinators and the community, the teams would be directed to follow the Covid-appropriate behaviour at all times.

Chandigarh has reported six polio cases since 1998 and the last case surfaced in 2006.

As per the WHO surveillance bulletin, Chandigarh has the best polio surveillance standards in the country and was declared number one in 2019 and 2021.

In city, last case surfaced in 2006

• Chandigarh has reported six polio cases since 1998 and the last case surfaced in 2006.
• As per the WHO surveillance bulletin, Chandigarh has the best polio surveillance standards in the country and was declared number one in 2019 and 2021.