Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Sunday, 28 June 2026, launched the state-wide Pulse Polio campaign from Gandhinagar, initiating a major immunisation drive targeting children aged zero to five years across the state. The campaign aims to administer anti-polio drops to more than 83.49 lakh children, mobilising one of Gujarat's largest public health operations in recent years.

Context

Posting on X, CM Patel announced the launch in Gujarati, stating: 'ગાંધીનગર ખાતેથી રાજ્યવ્યાપી પલ્સ પોલિયો અભિયાનનો પ્રારંભ કરાવ્યો' ['I launched the state-wide Pulse Polio campaign from Gandhinagar']. He called the effort a 'herculean task' (ભગીરથ કાર્ય) and urged all citizens to participate in keeping Gujarat polio-free. The post was accompanied by four images from the launch event.

India was declared polio-free by the World Health Organization in 2014, but annual Pulse Polio rounds continue as a preventive measure to sustain that status, particularly given cross-border risks and the presence of wild poliovirus in neighbouring countries.

Scale of the Campaign

The operational scale of this year's drive is substantial. Across Gujarat, 32,997 polio booths have been activated to administer the oral vaccine. A workforce of 65,994 health teams is deployed at these booths, working under the supervision of 6,599 supervisors.

To ensure no child is left out, health workers will conduct door-to-door visits on 29 and 30 June 2026, reaching children who may have missed the booth-based rounds. This follow-up mechanism is a standard feature of India's Pulse Polio strategy, designed to achieve near-complete coverage even in remote or underserved areas.

Policy Backdrop

India's Pulse Polio Immunisation Programme was launched nationally in 1995 under the Universal Immunisation Programme, with the goal of eradicating poliomyelitis through repeated, high-coverage oral vaccine rounds. Gujarat has consistently participated in these national rounds, supplemented by state-specific sub-national immunisation days in high-risk districts.

The campaign falls under the broader framework of the National Polio Surveillance Project, a joint initiative of the Indian government and the World Health Organization. Sustaining polio-free status requires maintaining population immunity above 95 per cent — a threshold that campaigns of this scale are designed to protect.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary beneficiaries are 83.49 lakh children between the ages of zero and five across Gujarat. Frontline health workers — ASHAs, anganwadi workers, and auxiliary nurse midwives — form the backbone of the booth and door-to-door operations. District health officers and block-level supervisors coordinate logistics across urban and rural geographies.

Parents and guardians are being urged to bring children to the nearest polio booth or to ensure they are available when health workers visit homes on 29 and 30 June. Community participation, as CM Patel emphasised, is considered essential to the campaign's success.

What's Next

With booth-day activities on 28 June and door-to-door follow-up over the next two days, the state health machinery will compile coverage data to assess whether the 83.49 lakh target has been met. Any gaps identified during follow-up rounds will inform district-level catch-up efforts. The outcome of this drive will also feed into Gujarat's reporting to national health authorities, reinforcing the state's commitment to sustaining India's polio-free certification.