MR vaccine is safe, stresses health minister

Punjab health and family welfare minister Brahm Mohindra on Thursday claimed that the MR (measles-rubella) vaccination was safe and effective.

The minister, who addressed mediapersons along with PGIMER's paediatric department additional professor Dr Sanjay Verma and WHO’s Dr Srinivasan, emphatically asserted that MR vaccine prevented children from these two deadly diseases.

He said around eight crore children across 14 states and union territories had been safely administered the vaccines while in Punjab, 14 lakh children were vaccinated till Thursday.

The minister has invited those having doubts and misconceptions about the vaccination to come and clarify them with the experts from institutes such as PGIMER and WHO.

Dr Verma said the disease was still a big challenge and cause of disability and mortality as he himself had been attending to several patients suffering from measles and congenital rubella syndrome at the PGIMER. “Such deaths could be avoided by a simple vaccination,” he added.

Dr Srinivasan said it was a WHO pre-qualified vaccine and being manufactured by an Indian firm — Serum Institute of India — under strict quality control. “This vaccine is being exported to European countries and the USA. As many as 150 countries in the world have been using this vaccine in their routine immunisation drives.”

Mohindra expressed sorrow and regret at the death of a child in Bathinda and shared the grief of the deceased’s family. He clarified that as per preliminary investigation by experts, no link could be established between the MR vaccine and the child’s death.

He said that as per doctors attending the patient, the cause of death was acute gastroenteritis with severe dehydration.

ASKS PEOPLE WITH DOUBTS AND MISCONCEPTIONS TO MEET EXPERTS FROM PGIMER, WHO