Universal Immunisation Programme and Mission Indradhanush
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Direct answer
Universal immunisation programme and Mission Indradhanush are India's national strategies for free routine childhood vaccination and for reaching children missed by routine services. The Universal Immunisation Programme sets a fixed vaccine schedule from birth through childhood, while Mission Indradhanush, launched in 2014, runs catch-up drives for under-immunised children. Full immunisation coverage and the number of zero-dose children are the main indicators of performance.
What you must remember
- Birth doses: BCG, oral polio zero dose and hepatitis B birth dose, given as early as possible after birth.
- Six, ten and fourteen weeks: pentavalent, oral polio and rotavirus vaccines at all three visits, with pneumococcal conjugate and fractional inactivated polio vaccine at six and fourteen weeks only.
- Nine months: the first measles-containing dose, measles-rubella, given together with vitamin A.
- Sixteen to twenty-four months: the second measles-rubella dose, a DPT booster and an oral polio booster.
- Zero-dose child: a child who has received no routine vaccine, operationally one missing even the first pentavalent dose, and the main target of catch-up drives.
- Cold chain: most vaccines are stored between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius, and freezing destroys the potency of many of them.
- Mission Indradhanush: launched in 2014 to reach children and women missed by the routine programme.
Following the schedule and closing gaps
Immunisation works as a timed series, and every missed dose becomes a gap that must be closed. The steps below follow the schedule from birth to the booster and then to the catch-up that reaches children who fall behind.
- Vaccinate at birth: give BCG, oral polio zero and the hepatitis B birth dose as early as possible, since the birth dose protects against perinatal transmission.
- Complete the primary series: give pentavalent, oral polio and rotavirus vaccines at six, ten and fourteen weeks, with pneumococcal conjugate and fractional inactivated polio vaccines added at six and fourteen weeks.
- Give the nine-month dose: administer the first measles-rubella dose with vitamin A, which completes the main early-childhood protection against measles.
- Give the booster: administer the second measles-rubella dose, the DPT booster and the oral polio booster at 16 to 24 months.
- Check coverage: record each child in the register and calculate indicators such as the percentage fully immunised and the number of zero-dose children.
- Close gaps through catch-up: use Mission Indradhanush and intensified drives to reach under-immunised children, including those who were missed by routine services.
Coverage data are only useful when they identify which children are missing, so the register is as important as the vaccine itself.
Where the exam tries to catch you
Immunisation questions test the schedule timing and the definition of full coverage. Each trap below misplaces an age or counts a partial schedule as complete.
- Trap: giving the first measles dose routinely at six months. Correct: the first measles-containing dose is at nine months, and an earlier dose at six months is given only in outbreak settings.
- Trap: assuming a child who has had BCG and one DPT dose is fully immunised. Correct: full immunisation requires the full primary series and the measles dose, so partial schedules leave the child under-immunised.
- Trap: storing vaccines in the freezer compartment to keep them cool. Correct: most vaccines must be kept between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius, because freezing destroys their potency.
Frequently asked questions
What is the age for the first measles-containing vaccine in the UIP?
The first measles-containing vaccine is given at nine months of age in the national schedule, usually as measles-rubella, with vitamin A at the same visit. An early dose at six months is given only in outbreak situations. The second dose follows at 16 to 24 months.
What is a zero-dose child in immunisation programmes?
A zero-dose child has received no routine vaccine, and operationally is one who has missed even the first pentavalent dose. Identifying these children is a priority of catch-up drives such as Mission Indradhanush. The number of zero-dose children is a key indicator of equity in a programme.
What does Mission Indradhanush aim to achieve?
Mission Indradhanush was launched in 2014 to reach children and pregnant women who were missed by the routine programme. Intensified drives later extended its reach to hard-to-reach groups. It works by identifying under-immunised children and completing their schedules.
Which vaccines are part of the full immunisation definition?
Full immunisation under national coverage surveys includes BCG, three doses each of DPT and polio, and a measles-containing vaccine. The definition is used to calculate the full immunisation coverage indicator. Children with partial schedules are counted as under-immunised.
How should vaccines be stored in immunisation programmes?
Most vaccines are stored between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius in a maintained cold chain, from manufacture to administration. Freezing destroys the potency of many vaccines, so temperature monitoring is essential at every level. Routine cold chain checks and vaccine vial monitors are standard programme practice.