Mission Indradhanush 4.0 launched
New Delhi: Aiming to immunize every pregnant woman and children, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Monday launched the Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI) 4.0, which is the largest inoculation drive globally where annually more than three crore pregnant women and 2.6 crore children are covered through the Universal Immunisation Programme.
The minister launched the immunisation programme virtually in presence of health officials of various States and Union Territories. The IMI 4.0 will have three rounds and will be conducted in 416 districts (including 75 districts identified for Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav) across 33 States and UTs, the minister said.
"India is implementing the largest immunisation programme globally where we annually cover more than three crore pregnant women and 2.6 crore children through the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP)," he said.
Mandaviya also noted that while the pace of routine immunisation has slowed down due to Covid-19 pandemic, IMI 4.0 will immensely contribute in filling the gaps and make lasting gains towards universal immunisation. "It will ensure that Routine Immunisation (RI) services reach the unvaccinated and partially vaccinated children and pregnant women," he said.
In the first round (February-April 2022), 11 states will conduct IMI 4.0, while the other 22 states will conduct the rounds from April to May.
The states of Assam, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tripura and Chhattisgarh will conduct the drive in the first phase, while the states and UTs of Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha, Bihar, Puducherry, Delhi, Punjab, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Telangana, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh will conduct the rounds in the second phase.
"With the aim to increase the full immunisation coverage, the Prime Minister launched Mission Indradhanush in December 2014 to cover the partially and unvaccinated pregnant women and children in pockets of low immunisation coverage, high-risk and hard-to-reach areas and protect them from vaccine-preventable diseases," he said.
Mission Indradhansuh was also identified as one of the flagship schemes under Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (16,850 villages across 541 districts) and Extended Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (48,929 villages across 112 aspirational districts).
