Reaching mobile populations with polio vaccine in India

A recent polio immunization campaign in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh succeeded in treating some of the most difficult-to-reach families in this area – mobile labourers.

In Aligarh district, an extended nomadic family of 25 adults and 10 children set up tents in an open space off the main road. The family hails from Lohar but has been working in Uttar Pradesh for generations.

The eldest woman in the family emerged from the tent and approached the visiting mobile health team. “We have given polio drops to our children,” she said. The polio vaccination team came a day before, she explained, “and all the children were vaccinated.”