COIMBATORE: The District Administration, Department of Public Health, Coimbatore Corporation and other organisations such as Rotary Clubs carried out an intensive Pulse Polio Immunisation programme in Coimbatore District on Sunday to administer oral polio vaccine to over 3 lakh children in the 0-5 age group.

The next round of immunisation will be carried out on February 7.

Minister for Rural Industries Pongalur N. Palanisamy inaugurated the drive by administering the drops to children at the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital.

District Collector P. Umanath, Mayor R. Venkatachalam, Deputy Mayor N. Karthik, Joint Director of Health Services M. Doraikannan, Deputy Director S. Senthilkumar, Assistant City Health Officer R. Sumathi. Corporation Health Committee Chairman P. Nachimuthu, South Zone Chairman P. Pynthamil, Rotary Club members involved in the Pulse Polio drive every year were among those present.

The drops were administered at 1,557 centres.

These included more than 25 mobile centres and also those at the railway stations, bus stands and airports to cover the floating population.

Totally, 6,272 people drawn from various departments were involved in carrying out the drive.

Employees or workers from the nutrition, health and education departments and members of voluntary organisations were deployed at these centres.

The Minister administered polio drops to children at the Corporation’s health centre at Panagadu.

Refugee camps

The Collector administered the drops to children at a refugee camp for Sri Lankan Tamils at Pooluvapatti.

Our Tirupur Staff Reporter adds: The Minister for Highways and Minor Ports, M.P. Saminathan, inaugurated the first-leg of the Intensive Pulse Polio Immunisation programme in Tirupur.

As many as 1,084 booths were established by the district administration at primary health centres, government hospitals, municipal and corporation buildings, and schools to administer polio drops to 2,35,550 children identified in the age group of zero to five years.

Besides, 18 additional booths were set up at major bus stands, railway stations and at places of tourism importance like Sivanmalai and Avinashi temple, to cover the population in transit.

A total of over 4,000 volunteers were utilised to administer the vaccine.

Deputy Director of Public Health and Preventive Medicine V. Vijayalakshmi said that the health officials would carry out a door-to-door campaign along this week to administer vaccines to the children left out on Sunday.

Courtesy - Hindu