Polio immunisation drive

PUDUCHERRY: The Health Department immunised a total of 92,472 children aged below five years across the four regions of the Union Territory during the second phase of the intensified pulse polio immunisation campaign on Sunday.

An official of the department said the first day of the drive achieved 99 per cent coverage through booth activities.

A total of 72,263 children were immunised in Puducherry, 15,045 in Karaikal, 1,603 in Mahe and 3,561 in Yanam, he said. This will be followed by be door-to-door survey on Monday and Tuesday, he added.
10,000 volunteers deployed

In Villupuram, District Collector R.Palanisamy inaugurated the second and final phase of polio vaccination on the municipality premises on Sunday.

Municipal Chairman Janakaraj and other officials were present on the occasion.

The Collector said that the first phase of vaccination was successfully conducted on January 10.

In the current phase over 10,000 volunteers had spread over 2,375 centres to administer the polio drops to at total of 3.50 lakh children up to five years of age. Not to leave out those in transit mobile centres too had been deployed. Volunteers had been deputed to the newly sprung housing colonies and the narikoravas tenements to give administer the drops.

At Cuddalore District Revenue Officer S.Natarajan inaugurated the vaccination programme at the Manjakuppam government high school. Under the programme about three lakh children would be covered by over 6,000 volunteers in the district on Sunday.