55 lakh children to get Measles-Rubella vaccine

Media sensitised on Jan16 vaccination camaign

New Delhi: The Measles-Rubella vaccination campaign covering nearly 55 lakh children in the age group of nine months and 15 years will be launched in Delhi on January 16.

The five-week campaign will cover all preschool children, school children (government and private) and out-of-school children in 11 districts of the national capital.

This was announced at a 'National Media Engagement Workshop' on Measles-Rubella vaccination campaign held here by Delhi's Directorate of Family Welfare with support from the UNICEF, the WHO and partners.

The objective of the workshop was to sensitise media about the ongoing Measles-Rubella vaccination campaign in India and the state's preparedness for introducing the Measles Rubella Vaccination (MRV) campaign, a statement by the UNICEF said on Thursday.

India is committed to eliminate measles, and control rubella and congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) by 2020. The largest ever vaccination campaign worldwide aims to cover approximately 40 crore children in the age group of 9 months to less than 15 years of age. Children will be given a single shot of Measles-Rubella (MR) vaccination during the campaign.

Since the launch in 2017, the MRV campaign has covered nearly 20 crore children in 30 states and Union Territories, the statement said. Opening the workshop, Dr Pradeep Haldar, Deputy Commissioner, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said, “Immunisation is one of the most effective and cost-effective way to protect children lives.

The recently introduced measles-rubella vaccine, which will be provided for free in schools, during the campaign, in health facilities and at outreach session sites, is another such step to achieve our goals.”

The UNICEF, LIONS Club, Rotary Club, IMA, DMA and IAP have extended their support towards MRV campaign in Delhi. India has one of the largest immunisation programmes in the world, in terms of number of beneficiaries, geographical coverage, and quantities of vaccine used, with nearly 26 million new born babies targeted for immunisation each year, the statement said. Rubella, which is commonly referred to as German measles is a mild infection but can have serious consequences if it occurs in pregnant women.

India's newest MR vaccine also protects against measles, a major killer of small children. Highly contagious, it spreads through coughing and out of 1,34,200 measles deaths globally in 2015, around 49,200 occurred in India – nearly 36 per cent. Those who survive are more vulnerable to its complications such as diarrhoea and pneumonia, the statement said.