COIMBATORE: Claiming that the need of the hour to eliminate cervical cancer, Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan said the State government would join hands with educational institutions to launch a pilot project to administer the HPV (Human papillomavirus) vaccine on adolescent girls so that they could keep cervical cancer at bay. He was addressing a gathering during the 11th national conference of Asia Oceania Research Organisation on Genital Infections and Neoplasia (AOGIN) India in Coimbatore on Saturday.
He said the rate of immunisation against HPV infection dropped from 14% to 12% during the Covid-19 pandemic. The minister also urged the stakeholders involved to take steps to ensure the reproductive health of women. AOGIN India president Sabhyata Gupta stressed on the need to work towards goals set by the World Health Organization on the global elimination of cervical cancer by 2030. Chairperson of GRG Institutions Nandini Rangaswamy and others were present.