India to achieve full immunisation by 2020: Nadda

Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda Thursday said India aims to achieve full immunisation coverage for children by 2020.

"India will achieve full immunisation coverage for all children by 2020 through a Catch-Up campaign," Nadda said.

He was speaking at the launch of "Mission Indradhanush", a campaign that aims to cover all those children by 2020 who are either unvaccinated or are partially vaccinated against seven vaccine preventable diseases.

The diseases are diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, tuberculosis, measles and hepatitis B.

The mission was launched on Good Governance Day to mark the birth anniversary of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Under the campaign, four special vaccination campaigns will be conducted between January and June 2015 with intensive planning and monitoring of these campaigns.

The learnings from the successful implementation of the polio programme will be applied in planning and implementation of the mission.

Nadda said: "We have identified 201 high focus districts in the country in the first phase which have nearly 50 percent of all unvaccinated or partially vaccinated children."

"These districts will be targeted by intensive efforts to improve the routine immunization coverage," he said.

The minister stated that of the 201 districts, 82 districts are in just four states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan and nearly 25 percent of the unvaccinated or partially vaccinated children of India are in these districts.

Emphasising that there was a need to accelerate of immunisation process in the country, Nadda said: "Between 2009-2013 immunisation coverage has increased from 61 percent to 65 percent, indicating only 1 percent increase in coverage every year."

"To accelerate the process of immunisation by covering 5 percent and more children every year, the Mission Mode has been adopted to achieve target of full coverage by 2020," he stated.

Global agencies like WHO, UNICEF and Rotary International will work in collaboration with the health ministry to implement the campaign.