Every year on 24th October, with an aim to eradicate polio, many governmental and non-governmental organizations come together and celebrate World Polio Day. This year, the theme of the day is "Delivering on a Promise".
The World Health Organization (WHO) explains that Poliomyelitis (polio) is a highly infectious viral disease that largely affects children under 5 years of age. The virus is transmitted by person-to-person spread mainly through the fecal-oral route or, less frequently, by a common vehicle (e.g. contaminated water or food) and multiplies in the intestine, from where it can invade the nervous system and cause paralysis. 1 in 200 infections leads to irreversible paralysis. Among those paralyzed, 5% to 10% die when their breathing muscles become immobilized.
Polio In India
According to WHO, India rolled out the Pulse Polio Immunization Programme on 2 October 1994, when the country accounted for around 60% of the global polio cases. Within two decades, India received ‘Polio-free certification’ from the World Health Organization on 27 March 2014, with the last polio case being reported in Howrah in West Bengal on 13 January 2011.
Ensuring equitable access to vaccines to everyone, including the most marginalized and vulnerable groups living in the remotest parts of the country, made eradication possible. A high commitment at every level led to policymakers, health workers, frontline workers, partners and community volunteers, working in tandem to deliver life-saving polio drops to every child wherever they were, be it at home, in school, or in transit.
Apart from equitable access to vaccines, the government simultaneously addressed social and cultural concerns to remove vaccine hesitancy in less developed areas with poor health systems, and among marginalized communities and vulnerable groups by involving communities and local leaders for micro-level communication and community mobilization.
The efforts to keep the country polio-free continue, with the first Polio National Immunisation Day (NID) for 2021 on January 31. More than 159 million children have been vaccinated against polio since January this year. The polio vaccination coverage at the end of round one is more than 97% against a target of 165 million children, according to WHO data for tracking the quality of immunization.
Polio Prevention
The National Health Portal of India (NHP) states that there is no cure, but safe and effective vaccines are there. Polio can be prevented through immunization. The Polio vaccine is given multiple times, almost always protects a child for life. The strategy to eradicate polio is therefore based on preventing infection by immunizing every child until transmission stops and the world is polio-free. There are two types of vaccines to prevent infection.
- OPV (Oral Polio Vaccine): It is given orally as a birth dose for institutional deliveries, then primary three doses at 6, 10 & 14 weeks and one booster dose at 16-24 months of age.
- Injectable Polio Vaccine (IPV): Two fractional doses are given at 6 and 14 weeks of age by the Intradermal route on the right upper arm.
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