The Chandigarh administration officially launched its Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination campaign on this Saturday. The drive aims to eliminate cervical cancer by targeting young girls at a critical age before they are exposed to the virus. The face of this initiative was 14-year-old Ishani, a student from Little Flower Convent School in Panchkula, who stepped forward as the very first volunteer to receive the shot.Ishani arrived at the Model Immunization Center at GMSH-16 with her mother, Sonia, a nursing staff member at the Manimajra Civil Hospital. The campaign was officially inaugurated by Punjab governor and UT administrator Gulab Chand Kataria. This life-saving vaccine, Gardasil-4, has now been integrated into the National Immunization Programme, making it entirely free for eligible girls at all government health facilities. Currently, the drive focuses on a single-dose regimen for girls who have completed 14 years but are under 15 years of age.
