The Pulse Polio Immunisation programme was held at various parts in the city on Sunday. The VMC conducted the programme at places like Patamata Urban Health Centre, Lambadipeta (Cholera Hospital) Ayurvedic Dispensary, and Ajithsingh Nagar Urban Health Centre. The Corporation also conducted the programme at Railway East Main gate and at Pandit Nehru Bus Station.
On the occasion, speakers urged the parents to bring their children to polio vaccination centre to administer the drops. The parents should voluntarily come forward to administer the drops to avoid polio. It was better to prevent than cure. The polio drops would be administered to children aged between 0 to 5 years. The government was spending crores of rupees to eradicate the polio in the country. It was duty of every citizen to lend their support in government’s endeavour, they said, adding, everyone should join hands to make the city, a polio free city.
Door-to-door campaignThe corporation would conduct a three-day door-to-door campaign in the city, and made arrangements accordingly. As many as 1,34,938 children in the age group of 0 to 5 years in the city limits alone would be administered polio drops during the three days, and 38 route officers to monitor 1,735 staff deployed to accomplish the task. The VMC has opened 382 booths to administer the polio drops. In addition, 29 transit centres at Durga temple, Railway Station, Bus station, Gunadala and other places were functioning. Ten mobile teams were also constituted to reach every child.
The district administration had set for itself a target of administering drops to 5,17,000 children during three days. About 2,560 centres would be functioning across the district.
Krishna district Collector and VMC special officer M. Raghunandan Rao, Municipal Commissioner C. Hari Kiran, Medical and Health Regional Director Dr. D. Shalini Devi, District Medical and Health Officer Dr. D. Sarasijakshi, Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMOH) Dr. P. Ratnavali, senior medical officers Dr. Iqbal Hussain and others were present.
Kanna lauds effortsAgriculture Minister Kanna Lakshminarayana has appealed to parents to administer polio drops to their wards and give them a healthy life.
Mr. Lakshminarayana administered polio drops to infants and launched the PPI programme at the Municipal Primary School at Nallacheruvu in the city.
Speaking on the occasion, he said that Guntur district topped in the implementation of the PPI in the State and praised the officials for their efforts to check polio. He asked doctors, paramedics, and other staff to make door-to-door visits and cover all the children aged below five.
Collector S. Suresh Kumar administered the vaccine to children at the Urban Health Centre in the city and Urban Superintendent of Police Gopinath Jatty launched the programme at a hospital and administered drops to the children.
Mr. Suresh Kumar said 4.5 lakh children aged between zero and five years would be administered the vaccine in the district. The Medical and Health Department arranged 2,500 centres and deputed nearly 10,000 staff for the success of the programme.
MLC K.S. Lakshman Rao said PPI booths were arranged at bus and railway stations, primary and urban health centres, and at public places, and asked the parents to join hands to form a polio-free society.
