Senior Correspondent

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Bhopal: Real time monitoring of the special immunization drive under Mission Indradhanush, scheduled to commence on July 7, would be undertaken by state health department to ascertain the number of kids immunized each day and the gap between target and its achievement.

Mission director of National Health Mission, MP, V Kiran Gopal Rao told media persons on Monday that the data on immunization would be collated each day from sub-centre to district and then to state level. The special drive to immunize children who could not get immunization during routine drives would be for seven days till July 14.

This would be the fourth round of phase III of Mission Indradhanush being carried out in 13 districts of the state. Nationwide the drive is being conducted in 201 high-focus districts where immunization is lower than state average.

The districts being covered in third phase are - Alirajpur, Jhabua, Ashok Nagar, Raisen, Vidisha, Sagar, Tikamgarh, Damoh, Chhattarpur, Panna, Rewa, Umaria, and Satna.

Mission Indradhanush aims to immunise all children below two years of age against seven preventable diseases (diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, tuberculosis, measles and hepatitis B). Also pregnant women are to be given tetanus shots during the campaign.

Dr Santosh Shukla, state deputy director (Immunization), shared that State had reached 12, 31,186 children in last two phases in year 2015 & 2016 under Mission Indradhanush in 38 districts, while 3.40 lakh kids were fully immunised. The target for this third phase is to fully immunise 2.65 lakh children. Full immunisation means vaccination for all seven preventable diseases.

Dr Vandana Bhatia, UNICEF Health Specialist mentioned that UNICEF supports Mission Indradhanush through communication and cold chain monitoring. She further added in her presentation 53.6 % children below two years are fully immunized in the State as per NFHS (IV), which means over 46% are still left out.  

 Dr Pankaj Somani, Senior Project Officer, UNDP, Vipin Shrivastava State Cold Chain Officer, Government of Madhya Pradesh, Dr OP Tiwari, Deputy Director Routine Immunisation and Nitin Kothari of Clinton Foundation were present at the meet.

Anil Gulati, UNICEF Communication Specialist, conducted the programme.