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Probe into type-2 polio virus contamination
Why in the news ?
- The government has ordered a probe after traces of poliovirus type 2 were found in some batches of oral polio vaccine (OPV).
- The type-2 polio virus contamination had detected in the vials used for immunisation in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Telangana.
More in the news
- The last case due to type-2 wild poliovirus globally was reported from Aligarh in India in 1999.
- India was declared polio free in 2014 and the last case was reported on 13 January 2011.
- India eliminated the type-2 strain in 2016, and the type-2 containing poliovirus vaccine (ToPV) was phased out in April 2016.
- Children born after April 2016 in India have no immunity to type-2 polio virus.
- Traces of polio type-2 virus were found in some batches of oral polio vaccine (OPV) manufactured by a Ghaziabad-based pharmaceutical company.
- According to the ministry official, the contamination came to light after surveillance reports from Uttar Pradesh showed signs of the virus in stool samples of some children.
- The OPVs were sent for testing which confirmed that some of them were contaminated with type-2 virus.
Source
The Hindu.