Ranchi/Dhanbad/Gumla: The three-day polio immunisation campaign kicked off across the state on Sunday, aiming to inoculate 61.26 lakh children in the 0-5 age group.Ranchi mayor Roshni Khalkho, local MLA C P Singh and director of National Health Mission, Jharkhand chapter, Shashi Prakash Jha, inaugurated the campaign by administering polio drops to children. In Ranchi, out of the targeted 5,05,524 children, 4,51,019 were inoculated on the first day of the campaign, civil surgeon Dr Prabhat Kumar said.“On Sunday, we achieved an impressive 89.22% coverage and the remaining 11% will be covered on Monday and Tuesday. A 95.80% coverage was recorded in urban areas, while 84.64% were covered in rural areas. In the next two days, health workers will conduct door-to-door visits to administer the doses,” Kumar added.Jha said, “Special teams have also been deployed at railway stations, bus stands, markets and other public places to reach more children.”In Dhanbad, the campaign was launched at the community health centre, Sadar, with deputy development commissioner Sunny Raj administering the first doses. Polio drops were administered at 1,976 booths on the first day.In Gumla, the campaign will target 1,49,570 children. Civil surgeon Dr Shambhu Nath Chaudhary said, “Polio can only be prevented through timely administration of vaccine doses.”District immunisation officer Dr Sunil Ram said, “A total of 1,198 teams and 119 supervisors have been deployed at 597 booths.”(With inputs from Sharad Chandra & K A Gupta)
