4-day Pulse Polio drive begins Dec 21: Over 11 lakh children to be vaccinated across GBA

A four-day Pulse Polio campaign will be conducted across five city corporations under the GBA, aiming for 100% coverage of children below five years through thousands of booths, mobile teams, and volunteers.

The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) has set an ambitious target to administer Pulse Polio drops to more than 11 lakh children as part of a four-day immunisation campaign scheduled from December 21 to December 24. The initiative aims to achieve 100% Pulse Polio coverage across the GBA limits.

GBA Chief Commissioner Maheshwar Rao has directed officials to take all necessary steps to ensure that no eligible child is missed during the campaign. The drive will cover five city corporations under the GBA jurisdiction, with a target population of 11,34,988 children aged from newborns up to five years.

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To achieve this, a large-scale operational plan has been put in place. A total of 4,452 vaccination points will be set up across the city. This includes 3,391 fixed booths, 601 transit teams, and 460 mobile teams that will operate in high-footfall and vulnerable areas.

The campaign will be supported by 17,808 volunteers deployed for vaccination duties, while 881 supervisors will oversee operations to ensure smooth implementation and quality control. Students from nursing colleges, medical colleges, and paramedical institutions will be engaged as volunteers to strengthen manpower on the ground.

Special focus has been placed on reaching children in crowded and high-mobility areas. Mobile vaccination teams will be stationed at bus terminals, markets, railway stations, metro stations, shopping malls, major parks, tourist destinations, exhibition venues, and slum areas to ensure maximum coverage.

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Authorities have also identified more than 2,700 apartment complexes within the city limits. Instructions have been issued to ensure Pulse Polio drops are administered in every apartment without exception. Dedicated Pulse Polio booths will be set up in all five city corporations to support this effort.

The GBA has made it mandatory for all children from birth up to five years to receive two drops of the oral polio vaccine. The vaccine will be available not only at campaign booths but also at clinics, primary health centres, maternity hospitals, referral hospitals, private hospitals, and medical college hospitals.

In preparation for the drive, several awareness initiatives have already been launched. Public announcements using auto-tippers fitted with loudspeakers are being used to spread information. In addition, awareness messages are being displayed and broadcast at metro stations, malls, and cinema theatres to ensure parents are informed and encouraged to participate.

Officials said the comprehensive planning and multi-channel outreach are aimed at ensuring full participation and achieving the goal of complete polio immunisation across the GBA area.

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