Zero dose for children: There was a stir in the Health Ministry when an international report by UNICEF claimed that the number of unvaccinated children was increasing rapidly in India. However, the Indian Union Health Ministry has dismissed these vaccination figures of the country and said that since 2014, vaccination has been administered to 5.46 crore children and 1.32 crore pregnant women. On the UNICEF report, the Health Ministry said that these figures give an incomplete picture, while the situation in India is not that.
Who are the zero dose children?
What is zero dose for children? If a question comes to your mind regarding this, let us tell you that zero dose children, i.e. children without a dose. This is for children who have not yet received any immunization services or have not received any vaccination in their life till date.
It includes many vaccines like first dose of DTP, Hepatitis B, Tetanus etc. These vaccines are given immediately after the birth of the child and some vaccines are even given to pregnant women. UNICEF report states that the number of children without dose is high in India.
What does the UNICEF report say?
According to a UNICEF report, the number of unvaccinated children is now higher than before the Covid-19 pandemic. It was stated in the report that this number has increased from 1.39 crore to 1.45 crore and is 17 lakh more than in 2019. Moreover, the number of unvaccinated and under-vaccinated children in 2023 is also 2.1 crore, which is 27 lakh more than the baseline. A UNICEF report states that India is one of the 10 countries where 69 percent of the world’s population has unvaccinated children.
Why is vaccination important?
Vaccination gives immunity to the child’s body, through which newborns can be protected from deadly diseases. This includes vaccines like measles, polio, whooping cough, diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis, which give the immune system the power to produce antibodies. When a child is born, these injections are given permanently.
Disclaimer: Some information given in the news is based on media reports. Before implementing any suggestion, you must consult the concerned expert.
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