Intensified Mission Indradhanush to Commence in Odisha soon

Bhubaneswar: The Intensified Mission Indradhanush drive (IMI 5.0) is set to launch in Odisha on September 11. The mission aims to identify and register all children under 5 years and pregnant women who may have missed their vaccine doses.

It will be executed in three rounds, spanning from September to November 2023, with each round lasting six days. The first round is scheduled from September 11 to 16, followed by the second and third rounds from October 9 to 14, and November 6 to 11, respectively. The objective of this drive is to vaccinate 1,04,261 unvaccinated or partially vaccinated children and 19,896 pregnant women in 314 blocks across 30 districts.

Dr. Bijaya Kumar Panigrahy, Director of Family Welfare, stressed the campaign’s purpose, stating, “Odisha is committed to immunize all under-five children who may have been left out or dropped out of vaccination programs, as our objective is to vaccinate every child.”

He further emphasized, “When it comes to children, mothers cannot be ignored. So all pregnant women who have missed their vaccination would also be covered during the campaign.”

Odisha boasts the highest immunization coverage in the country, as per the NFHS V (2019-21) report. The state has achieved remarkable progress, with full immunization coverage increasing from 36.1% (NFHS 1 report, 1992-93) to 90.5% (NFHS 5 Report, 2019-21). This significant improvement has led to a reduction in vaccine-preventable diseases and under-5 mortality rates in the state.

Addressing the media, Dr. Sugata Roy, Social & Behavior Change Specialist from UNICEF, highlighted the complexity of behavior change and the need for a systematic approach to address factors influencing vaccine resistance. He stated, “Children and pregnant mothers may miss immunization due to a lack of knowledge about the benefits of vaccines. We will educate households and mobilize families to promote vaccination.”

Since 2015, ten Mission Indradhanush drives have been successfully conducted in identified districts of Odisha. This year, IMI 5.0 aims to identify all children under 5 years old and pregnant women who have missed vaccine doses, register them on the U-WIN Digital Platform, and vaccinate them during specifically scheduled IMI sessions.

The mission involves various strategies, including field functionary training, headcount surveys to identify left-out or drop-out children under 5 and pregnant women, the creation of micro plans at the SC/Block/District levels, and state/district/block oversight and monitoring. All districts/municipal corporations have received operational, financial, and communication guidelines to ensure preparedness for the mission.