Bhubaneswar: Taking an initiative to protect children against Pneumonia and other Pneumococcal diseases, Odisha Health Minister Naba Kishore Das on Wednesday launched a statewide immunisation program of Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) for infants below 5 years.
State-level launch of Pneumococcal Conjugate vaccine under routine immunization in the state has been launched virtually by Health Minister Naba Kishore Das.
The state Health Minister said that the vaccination will benefit eight lakh children who have low immunity and malnourished, annually in reducing the risk of morbidity and mortality due to pneumonia and meningitis.
All the districts will start administering the vaccine to the beneficiaries by strictly adhering to the Covid-19 protocol and also asked to conduct extensive IEC activities to create awareness among the community.
Notably, Pneumococcal disease is a significant contributor to the under-five mortality rate worldwide. Annually, India witnesses an estimated 71 percent of pneumonia deaths and 57 percent of severe pneumonia cases.
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