Polio campaign to focus on migrant families too

UP has been poliofree since April 21, 2010. To retain this status, the health department has prepared a special plan to focus on migrants

There are 59,978 spots in the state with over 22 lakh migrant families that are under special focus in the polio campaign launched in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday morning .

There are two neighbouring countries that have reported polio cases in 2017 and this need special attention as the virus can travel with humans.

Pakistan reported 4 cases and Afganistan reported 6 cases in 2017.

The state has been polio free since April 21, 2010 (seven years and four months) and to retain this status, the state health department has prepared a special plan to focus on these families.

Indian attained polio free status in 2014.

As per the statistics with the health department, there are 92,205 migrant labourer families in UP, 76,516 families work at construction sites, 56,5343 families live in slums and 14,59, 552 families live in underserved areas, who need focus under the campaign.

The campaign that had been launched would cover 3.40 crore kids in Uttar Pradesh and the target was to cover all kids , including those in migrant families, said a government official.

He said that 6,500 transit teams had been constituted to travel and make sure no kid was left out in the week-long campaign.

On Day one, 110 booth were set up and from Monday 66,000 teams under 22,000 supervisors will start moving in different areas, including Nepal border where till August 2017, 364673 kids had been administered polio drops.

“We can provide facility and reach to families but it is also the responsibility of families to get polio drops administered to their children,” said a government doctor working in the campaign.