Efforts are on to ensure that all 11.27 lakh children aged below five in the city are covered under the Pulse Polio immunisation programme to be held on January 18 and February 22.
Officials from Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and the Health Department under Bengaluru (Urban) district are geared up to achieve 100 per cent Pulse Polio coverage, said Mayor N. Shantha Kumari.
Appealing to parents to bring their children aged below five on both days for getting the polio drops administered, she said that 2,970 booths would be set up across the city at all hospitals, markets, railway stations, bus-stops, malls, medical colleges and other public places. While the programme would be implemented by BBMP in 135 wards, the remaining 63 wards would be covered by the Health Department.
An awareness rally will be taken out from Mahatma Gandhi Statue on M.G. Road on January 16.
BBMP Commissioner M. Lakshminarayana said that focus would be on covering children of migrant workers, especially construction workers. “We have already held coordination meetings with the Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India and Builders’ Association of India in this regard.”
He pointed out that for the past four years, no case of polio has been reported from anywhere in the country. “However, we have to ensure 100 per cent coverage as many polio cases have been reported in Pakistan and Afghanistan.”
