The Pulse Polio Immunisation (PPI) programme in Visakhapatnam district saw 97.23% of children aged below five years being administered polio drops.
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District Medical and Health Officer (DMHO) S. Tirupathi Rao said that in the district, there were 4,69,992 children aged below five, of which 4,56,978 children were administered polio drops.
“Additional vaccination drives will be conducted to ensure that those children who have not been administered the drops today will be immunised,” Dr. Tirupathi Rao said.
“On January 20, 21 and 22, door-to-door drives will be conducted by medical teams, who will check if children aged below five have been given the polio drops. The door-to-door drives will be conducted in rural areas on January 20 and 21,” Dr. Tirupathi Rao said.
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A large number of women were seen thronging the PPI booths which were set up at many places including Anganwadi centres, Primary Health Centres (PHCs), Community Health Centres (CHCs) and other hospitals in the district. Several teams went to nearby houses and informed the residents to bring their children to the booths for vaccination.
Special stalls were arranged at the railway station, RTC complex and other public places. The health department has deployed additional teams to Agency areas to ensure that children in the targeted age group are not left out of the immunisation drive.
Earlier, Visakhapatnam MP M.V.V. Satyanarayana, Tourism Minister M. Srinivasa Rao, Collector V. Vinay Chand, and GVMC Commissioner G. Srijana launched the vaccination drive at a health centre in Akkayyapalem.
Mr. Vinay Chand said that the government has sanctioned funds for repairs of about 400 sub-centres in the district.
Mr. Srinivasa Rao spoke about various health programmes taken up by the State government and urged the public to make use of them.
Officials distributed spectacles to children who were treated as part of the YSR Kanti Velugu programme. A sapling plantation programme was also organised.