PANJIM: The State Health Department will go ahead with its pulse polio programme as scheduled as it has not received any vaccines from the company, whose products were found to have been contaminated.
“Recently there were rumors being spread stating not to give polio drops to children up to 5 years as some virus has been found in them. This rumour was spread in response to some reports in sections of media that bivalent Oral Polio Vaccine supplied by a particular company were found ‘not of standard quality’,” State Family Welfare Bureau, Directorate of Health Services, said in a statement on Thursday. The Bureau said that use of bivalent Oral Polio Vaccine manufactured by the particular manufacturer has been stopped in the programme and all stocks have been withdrawn.
“Public health facilities in Goa have not received any stocks of the batch supplied by the said manufacturer which is declared substandard,” it added.
It said that there are other bivalent Oral Polio Vaccine manufacturers who have also been providing the polio vaccine. “The polio vaccines supplied by these other manufacturers have been tested and conform to all the recommended standards,” the Bureau confirmed.
