KOZHIKODE: The District registered a slight dip in the number of children under-5 who were administered polio vaccination this year as compared to last year. As many as 91.7 per cent children were given polio vaccination in the four days beginning from January 29. Among the blocks, Valayam and Kuttiyadi continue to remain immunization- resistant as reflected in the record - 64.5 per cent and 67.5 per cent respectively, the least in the district. Urban Kozhikode recorded 103.1 per cent and the rural part, 89.7 per cent.
Among the blocks, Thalakulathur was at the top, 100.3 per cent followed by Mukkam-100.1 per cent. Taluk-wise, Koyilandy showed 192.8 per cent, Kozhikode-101 per cent and Vadakara-102.9. “Last year it was slightly more than 91.7 per cent. We had carried out a special campaign focused on Valayam, Kuttiyadi areas but unfortunately the turnout was not as expected,” said District Reproductive Child Health (RCH) officer Dr. Sarala Nair. According to sources in the health department, superstitious religious beliefs coupled with the false propaganda of a few self-declared naturopaths is keeping parents away in resistance areas.
“When the health team visits the houses of these areas, the elders show printed articles of these naturopaths calling for boycott of immunization programmes,” said a health staff. Exaggerated incidents are being propagated against the vaccination. Another baffling factor is that there is stiff resistance to polio vaccination unlike other vaccination programmes. As many as 644 children of migratory families were given vaccination this time. Ninety such children were administered in Mukkam block.
