In just over half a century, we have made massive progress in protecting our children from polio. It's paying off. Today, on this World Polio Day, we are closer than ever to eliminating this terrible disease from India.
But while we celebrate the successes of the past, we must also look to the future. The simple truth is that polio still exists in India. As long as polio exists anywhere in the country, the threat of polio will continue to be there. Polio cripples and kills. Children face many threats, but this is one that we can prevent forever right now.
We know what works. When the polio eradication campaign started, India was reporting 500 polio cases per day. Since then, more than 40 lakh children have been saved from paralysis. You have seen me, cricketers and other public figures on television, urging everyone to join the immunization effort. In the last few years, there has been a marked increase in the number of parents who ensure their children are immunized. Thousands of dedicated health workers travel great distances to take vaccines to remote areas. All of this has had tremendous impact along with support from government leaders and increased surveillance to track and stop the polio virus. So far this year, we have seen only 39 polio cases — down from 741 in 2009. But as we know, India's eradication campaign still faces a variety of challenges. If not addressed, we will be unable to keep our children safe.
Now, intensified efforts have largely localized the polio virus to pockets in two states — Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. These states have large mobile populations, inaccessible areas and often, it is tough to find every family and immunize every vulnerable child. This explains recent cases in states such as Maharashtra, West Bengal and Jharkhand.
The Pulse Polio campaign, supported by our government and international organizations such as WHO, Unicef, and Rotary International, has made great strides in reaching these families; but we need to continue to do more and we need the entire country to be behind this effort.
There are many reasons why this campaign deserves our unwavering attention. Eradicating polio will allow us forever to reap the benefit of our investments, saving untold billions of rupees, and making new resources available for other public health and immunization efforts. Most important, if we eradicate polio, never again will a family lose a child to this disease. Failing to do so is costly to our economy, costly to our health system and harmful to our children.
It's clear that we're on the right track. But it's also clear that India is not the only country with a stake in the success of its polio eradication effort. India's success is key to the success of the global effort. Moreover, there is an international funding gap of more than Rs 3,500 crores that donors must fill to fully fund global polio eradication activities through 2012. To help deal with this challenge, the global community has re-energized its fight against polio. India has many allies against this disease — both nationally and internationally. Rotary International is one. It has raised millions for polio vaccines and mobilized thousands of volunteers to deliver them. And then there are visionary leaders such as Bill Gates, who are trying to make a difference through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
But every Indian can do their part. We need to ensure the sustained commitment of policymakers. We need to continue to view polio eradication as a priority worthy of investment. And we need to ensure that every one of us immunizes our child with the polio vaccine. If your friends and family are not, tell them the importance of the polio vaccine. If you see a vaccination team at a railway station or a bus stop, take your child along to it. Encourage others to do the same. It is our collective responsibility to protect every child in India against this crippling disease.
Through our success, we will prove that India is serious about defeating polio once and for all — for the sake of the children, and for the sake of the world.