Special MR drive begins to vaccinate 34 lakh missed children

A nationwide special measles-rubella (MR) vaccination campaign began on Saturday to bring around 34 lakh children who missed previous vaccination drives under immunisation coverage.

The ‘Intensified MR Catch-up Vaccination’ campaign was inaugurated by Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Husain at the T&T playground in Korail Slum in the capital. The campaign will continue until 31 October.

The drive will cover children aged six months to below five years who did not receive the MR vaccine or were missed during previous campaigns. Children who turn six months old during the campaign period will also be eligible.

Health workers and volunteers will conduct door-to-door visits to verify children's vaccination status and identify those left out of previous lists and campaign databases. Vaccination will be provided at designated centres and through field-level activities. The government said more than 1.98 crore children had received MR vaccines by 24 September under the National Measles-Rubella Vaccination Campaign 2026.