In the pursuance of the World Health Assembly resolution of 1988, the Pulse Polio Immunization (PPI) Programme was started nation-wide from 1995 to eradicate polio in India covering children in the age group 0-3 years. In order to accelerate the Pace of polio eradication, all children under the age of 5 years were targeted since 1996-97. The annual strategy on polio eradication is decided on the basis of recommendation of India Experts Advisory Group (IEAG) which constituted of Indian experts; and international experts from World Health Organization (WHO), United Nation Children Fund (UNICEF) & Centre for Disease Control (CDC) Atlanta.
- Of the 3 types of polio causing viruses, type 2 (WPV-2) has already been eradicated in 1999.
- The bivalent vaccine (bOPV) was introduced in the country for the first time in 2010.
- On 13th January the nation reached a major milestone in the history of polio eradication – a year without any case of wild polio being recorded.
- As India reached this ‘no wild case’ mark, it will no longer be considered ‘endemic’ to polio. Following this, the World Health Organisation removed India from the list of endemic nations.