The government of India launched second phase of Mission Indradhanush, an ambitious immunisation programme focusing on 352 districts and assured the states of full support for achieving the targets. It was launched by Union Health Minister JP Nadda. The Ministry aims to achieve full immunisation of more than 90 per cent children by 2020.

‘Mission Indradhanush’ aims at fully immunising more than 89 lakh children who are either unvaccinated or partially vaccinated and those who have not been covered during routine immunisation for various reasons. The Mission aims to immunise them against seven life-threatening but vaccine-preventable diseases — diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, tuberculosis, polio, measles and hepatitis-B.

In the second phase, 352 districts have been selected including 279 mid-priority districts, 33 from North-East states and 40 districts from the phase one, where large number of missed-out children were detected.

The first phase had started on 7 April, 2015 with initiatives taken in 201 high focus districts in 28 states and carried on for over a week in the months of April, May, June and July. In these four months, “Mission Indradhanush” held 9.4 sessions in which nearly 2 crore vaccines were administered to children and pregnant women.