Latest news with #UniversalImmunizationProgram
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Health
- Hindustan Times
Centre rolls out drive to immunise children in high-burden districts
Union ministry of health and family welfare rolled out a special drive to identify unvaccinated children in high-burden districts to expand the national immunisation coverage, people familiar with the matter said. Centre rolls out drive to immunise children in high-burden districts The drive, called zero dose implementation plan, will target 143 districts in 11 states with a high burden of children who have not received any immunisation dose so far, according to data. 'As part of this plan, special immunisation camps are being held to ensure all unvaccinated children are identified and vaccinated. The larger aim is to leave no children unvaccinated,' said a senior official, requesting anonymity. In a statement issued on Saturday, the health ministry said that the number of children who have not been immunised— wholly or partially— is steadily decreasing in India. 'India's percentage of zero-dose children to the total population has declined from 0.11% in 2023 to 0.06% in 2024, positioning it as a global exemplar in child health, as acknowledged by the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation in its 2024 report,' read the health ministry statement. India's Universal Immunization Programme currently covers 12 vaccine-preventable diseases and has seen significant expansion. Mission Indradhanush, intensified in 2017 in collaboration with state governments, has vaccinated 54.6 million children and 13.2 million pregnant women, according to government data. Through National Immunization Days and Sub-National Immunization Days, India has maintained polio-free status since 2014, said the health ministry. As per the UN-MMEIG 2000-2023 report, India's maternal mortality rate stands at 80 per 100,000 live births, reflecting an 86% decline relative to the global reduction of 48% since 1990. As per the UNIGME 2024 report, India achieved a 78% decline in the Under-Five Mortality Rate surpassing the global reduction of 61% and 70% decline in the Neonatal Mortality Rate compared to 54% globally during 1990 – 2023. 'India's antigen-wise immunisation coverage surpasses global averages across all antigens. India's consistent prioritization of the Universal Immunization Program reflects in its disease elimination milestones and focus on last-mile vaccine delivery,' read the statement. The Lancet published a paper on world's children who have missed vaccination on Tuesday. According to the paper, India has had the most number of unvaccinated children— 1.4 million— after Nigeria (2.5million), of the 15.7 million unvaccinated children globally in 2023. The paper said that at least half of the world's 15.7 million unvaccinated children in the same year were living in just eight countries, with 53% in sub-Saharan Africa and 13% in south Asia. The Democratic Republic of Congo (882,000), Ethiopia (782,000), Somalia (710,000), Sudan (627,000), Indonesia (538,000), and Brazil (452,000) were the other countries with high unvaccinated children load globally. In the south Asian region, India ranked number one with the highest number of zero-dose children in 2023, followed by Pakistan (419,000), Nepal (11,000), and Bangladesh (6,000). In response to the data, the health ministry noted, 'Any comparison with countries bearing a high burden of zero-dose children need to take into consideration India's substantial population size and robust immunisation coverage.'
Time of India
01-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
UP first to initiate real-time digital surveillance of VPDs
1 2 Varanasi: In a significant milestone, Uttar Pradesh has become the first state to launch real-time digital surveillance of vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs) using its own platform. Starting May 1, the UP govt initiated digital surveillance of VPDs on the Unified Disease Surveillance Portal (UDSP), which will facilitate real-time case reporting and accurate data collection, allowing quick detection of diseases and outbreaks. This will also help in implementation of effective strategies at a swift pace. CMO Dr Sandeep Chaudhary said case-based surveillance for six vaccine-preventable diseases — poliomyelitis (acute flaccid paralysis), measles, rubella, diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus — is being conducted under the Universal Immunization Program (UIP) with support from the World Health Organisation's National Public Health Support Network (NPSN). For the first time, this surveillance will be integrated into the UDSP, a state-owned digital platform developed by the Uttar Pradesh govt post-Covid to serve as an integrated surveillance system for the state. UP is the first state to develop such a platform, initially launched in May 2023 for 12 notified diseases and has been extensively operational since. The CMO said, "Through UDSP, digital surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases will enable rapid communication between districts and the state, improving the quality of public health response and timely disease identification. This will provide us with accurate, timely data, allowing better planning and monitoring of our immunisation programmes and facilitating swift action to improve vaccination coverage. Additionally, a major benefit of the platform is that our citizens will easily access their lab reports online, similar to how they received their Covid reports. Active participation from all health officials and staff is crucial for success of this initiative." A patient with a vaccine-preventable disease was registered at OPD of Sir Sundarlal Hospital, IMS BHU, on this portal. District immunisation officer Dr SS Kanojia said, "Under World Immunisation Week, we are conducting a school-based TD vaccination campaign across the state. Free TD vaccines are administered to students in grades 5 and 10 in both govt and private schools. Through the efforts, we are ensuring no child is deprived of a safe future due to lack of vaccination." He said that UDSP was launched in May 2023, making UP the first state in the country with its digital surveillance platform for 12 notified diseases. This ABDM-compliant portal has been successfully integrated with national portals, enabling seamless data sharing with the central govt. With the integration of VPD surveillance, we will have real-time data for these additional six diseases, helping us further enhance the program.
