BENGALURU: The Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Intensified Mission Indradhanush programme that aims to immunise children below the age of two, will be seeing its second phase of the mission being implemented in 19 districts of Karnataka from December.
“Our aim is to ensure that 90 per cent of the children are immunised with vaccines that will protect them from 12 diseases. The last time we did it, several children were left out. For this, Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) workers have been asked to do a head count of children who have missed the vaccines or did not receive any vaccines, for the second phase. The first session will be from December 2 to December 9,” said Dr Shivaraj Sajjanshetty, Project Director (Reproductive and Child Health).
Vaccine sites will be set up in the villages of 19 districts that saw partially immunised or unimmunised children in the state and the programme will go on till February. These vaccines prevent Tuberculosis, Polio, Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Measles, Rubella, Rota virus, Japanese encephalitis, Meningitis, and Pneumococcal disease (not present in Karnataka). The districts under which the programme will be implemented include Bengaluru Rural, Chikkaballapur, Chitradurga, Davangere, Shivamogga, Tumakuru, Ramanagar, Mysuru, Mandya, Chamarajanagar, Chikkamagaluru, Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Kodagu, Hassan, Yadgir, Raichur, Uttara Kannada and Dharwad.
vaccines administered in six sittings
Within twenty-four hours of the child’s birth, at six weeks of age, ten weeks, fourteenth week, between nine and twelve months, and between sixteen and eighteen months.