Govt tells states to refocus on universal immunization as covid cases fall
Premium- Universal immunization programme targets close to 26 million newborns and 29 million pregnant women annually
NEW DELHI : The Union health ministry has directed states and union territories to focus on the universal immunization programme (UIP), which was severely affected during the worst years of the covid pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
The universal immunization programme is one of the largest public health programmes targeting close of 26 million newborns and 29 million pregnant women annually. A child is said to be fully immunized if it receives all due vaccines as per the national immunization schedule within the 1st year of life.
“During the pandemic, the immunization division of the health ministry was occupied with the covid-19 vaccination programme. As a result, the routine vaccination programme went in backlog. With more than 2 billion covid vaccine doses having been administered so far and covid cases declining, there is a need to revive the universal immunization programme," a senior government official said.
The programme involves vaccination against 12 preventable diseases such as diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, measles, rubella, hepatitis B and meningitis. “Every component of universal immunization programme has been strengthened and intensified. For example, pulse polio vaccination has been geared up. All activities related to routine vaccination under Mission Indradhanush are being focused and continued," said the official, adding that some new vaccines are being added to the programme, which, however, may take some time. Mission Indradhanush focuses on pockets of low immunization coverage and tough terrains where the proportion of unvaccinated and partially vaccinated children is high.
“In the last two years, there has been a dip of approx. 20% in the routine immunisation programme. Pre-covid, the vaccination coverage was around 90%. A major dip was seen last year during the second wave in the month of March to June and this year during March-June. We have now completed two rounds of Mission Indradhanush to identify those beneficiaries who were missed because of covid," said another official requesting not to be quoted.
Queries emailed to the health ministry spokesperson did not elicit any response.
Meanwhile, India has also started domestic production of Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) for reducing Infant mortality and morbidity caused by pneumococcal pneumonia. It has been introduced in Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, 19 districts of Uttar Pradesh and 18 districts of Rajasthan. In August, the Central government launched an indigenously manufactured qHPV (human papillomavirus) vaccine which it plans to introduce in the immunization programme as a two-dose regimen.
In addition, the government has created a digital system called Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN) for ensuring vaccine stocks, their logistics and temperature-tracking in all cold chain points from the national to district level.
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