Pulse Polio Programme Launched in Churachandpur

The intensified pulse polio immunisation (IPPI) campaign was formally launched today at the District Hospital Conference Hall, Churachandpur, with Dr. Ph. Henkhoneng Mate, Chief Medical Officer, administering oral drops to children below five years of age.

The launch programme was convened by the District Health Society in association with the Department of Health and Family Welfare and the National Health Mission, Manipur. Dr. Kh. Sania Monica, Medical Superintendent of the District Hospital and DFWO/DIO, Churachandpur, joined officials, PHC staff, Anganwadi workers, ANMs, parents and guardians at the event.

Speaking at the launch, Dr. Mate expressed gratitude to frontline workers and stakeholders for their dedicated efforts in ensuring a healthier community. She urged parents and guardians to bring children under five years of age to the booths for free polio drops, emphasising that polio remains a devastating diseasecausing lifelong disability. She further stressed the importance of timely immunisation and called upon families to ensure that all mandatory vaccines are administered to safeguard children against preventable diseases.

In her keynote address, Dr. Monica observed that India has remained polio-free for the past 12 years owing to sustained vaccination efforts. She said the launch of IPPI 2026 was aimed at motivating parents and guardians to ensure that no child is left behind. She urged officials and families to actively participate in the campaign to protect children from polio.

Mobile medical teams have been deployed at various points, including border villages, to cover children travelling in vansand other vehicles. A total of 321 vaccination booths have been set up across the district, with booth activities to be followed by house-to-house immunisation drives on June 29 and 30. The district administration has set a target of vaccinating 27,190 children during the campaign. (DIO Ccpur)