Pulse polio campaign across Cachar, Over 1.9 Lakh children vaccinated on opening day

way2barak, June 28: —– Cachar district recorded an encouraging start to the National Immunization Day (NID) Pulse Polio campaign on Sunday, with more than 1.9 lakh children receiving the Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) on the opening day. The district administration and the Health Department launched the campaign through ceremonial programmes at Urban Primary Health Centre (PHC), Silchar, and Kalain Community Health Centre (CHC), where public representatives, health officials and frontline workers joined hands to mark the beginning of one of the country’s largest child immunization drives.

At Urban PHC, Silchar, the campaign was formally inaugurated by Hon’ble MLA Sri Rajdeep Roy. Additional Deputy Commissioner (Health) Sri Monojyoti Kutum, Joint Director of Health Services, Cachar, Dr. Sumona Naiding, WHO Surveillance Medical Officer Dr. Arkodev Kar, District Immunization Officer Dr. Abdul Salam Sheikh, SDM&HO (Headquarters) Dr. Anindita Chanda, Medical & Health Officer-I of Urban PHC Dr. Kamolika Dey, along with healthcare personnel, Lady Health Visitors (LHVs), Auxiliary Nurse Midwives (ANMs) and ASHA workers, attended the programme.

Welcoming the gathering, Dr. Sumona Naiding spoke about the continued importance of routine immunization and the Pulse Polio campaign in safeguarding children against vaccine-preventable diseases. Addressing parents and health workers, MLA Rajdeep Roy appealed to families to ensure that every eligible child receives the vaccine, describing immunization as one of the most effective public health interventions for protecting future generations from poliomyelitis.

A similar programme was held at Kalain Community Health Centre, where Hon’ble MLA Sri Kamalakshya Dey Purkayastha inaugurated the campaign by administering two drops of the Oral Polio Vaccine to a child. The event was attended by Additional Chief Medical & Health Officer (Family Welfare), Cachar, Dr. M. I. Barbhuiya, Deputy Superintendent of Kalain CHC Dr. M. S. Bhowmik, Dr. P. Rangmai, Dr. Chirosree Deb, Dr. Biswajit Nath, members of the Block Programme Management Unit (BPMU) and frontline health workers. Dr. M. I. Barbhuiya welcomed the gathering and highlighted the role of coordinated field-level efforts in ensuring successful implementation of the campaign.

Cachar has set a target of vaccinating 2,78,073 children in the 0-5 years age group during the Pulse Polio campaign. By the end of the first day, more than 1,90,000 children had received the vaccine, accounting for nearly 70 per cent of the district target.

The Health Department has deployed an extensive network to cover every corner of the district. A total of 1,312 Pulse Polio booths have been established, supported by 5,228 frontline workers, 267 supervisors, medical officers, two mobile teams, 1,187 general booths, 59 difficult booths, 28 institutional booths and 38 transit booths. Special arrangements have also been made for children living in remote and difficult-to-access areas, with dedicated teams visiting locations where access to healthcare services is often limited.

Vaccination booths remained open from 9.00 am to 4.00 pm on Sunday. Following booth-based vaccination, health teams began house-to-house visits in the evening to identify children who could not attend the booths. The door-to-door campaign will continue over the next two days, with field workers visiting households across the district to ensure that no child below five years of age is left out of the immunization drive.

Health officials also expressed confidence that sustained field mobilisation, community participation and the commitment of thousands of frontline workers would help the district achieve complete coverage by the end of the campaign.

This is stated in a press release issued by the Regional Office of Information & Public Relations Barak valley Zone Silchar Assam.