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India receives 'Measles and Rubella Champion' award of the American Red Cross

The award was conferred to recognize India’s tireless efforts to combat these infectious diseases, the health ministry said on Friday.

• By PharmaNews Live Desk
• New Delhi
• Mar 09, 2024

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India has been bestowed with the prestigious Measles and Rubella Champion Award by the Measles and Rubella Partnership at the American Red Cross Headquarters in Washington, DC, US on 6th March 2024. The award was conferred to recognize India’s tireless efforts to combat these infectious diseases, the health ministry said on Friday.

The award was received by Ambassador Sripriya Ranganathan, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of India, Washington D.C. on behalf of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

According to the Health Ministry, the Measles and Rubella Partnership comprises a multi-agency planning committee, including the American Red Cross, BMGF, GAVI, US CDC, UNF, UNICEF and WHO, all dedicated to reducing global measles deaths and preventing rubella illness. 

"This accolade celebrates India's unwavering commitment to public health and its outstanding leadership in curbing the spread of these infectious diseases among children," the ministry said.

It further recognizes India for providing regional leadership to the measles and rubella elimination programme by using "measles as a tracer" to strengthen routine immunisation under the country's Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP).

"Despite facing numerous challenges, India has demonstrated remarkable progress in reducing measles and rubella cases and preventing outbreaks through a series of comprehensive interventions," the statement said further.

The Government of India’s proactive MR vaccination campaign in high-risk areas and innovative strategies to reach underserved populations, robust surveillance systems, and effective public-awareness initiatives have played a key role in safeguarding the health and well-being of its population.

According to the Health Ministry, the award is a testament to the dedication and hard work of the country’s frontline health workers, healthcare professionals, policymakers, and communities across the nation. These efforts have resulted in 50 districts consistently not witnessing any measles cases, while 226 districts have not reported rubella cases over the past 12 months.

Measles and Rubella are vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs) and MR Vaccine has been part of India’s Universal Immunization Programme since 2017. The government of India is working towards eliminating measles and rubella from the country.

(This story has been published from a syndicated feed with inputs from the Agencies.)