Source: TH
Context: The Government of India, in coordination with WHOplans to gradually phase out the National Polio Surveillance Network (NPSN) starting June 2025, reducing the number of centres from 280 to 140 by 2026–27.
About National Polio Surveillance Network (NPSN):
- What is NPSN?
- The National Polio Surveillance Network is India’s key disease surveillance mechanism for detecting and controlling polio and other vaccine-preventable diseases.
- When was it established?
- Year: 1997
- Initiative: Originally called the National Polio Surveillance Project (NPSP)
- Organizations Involved:
- World Health Organization (WHO)
- Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India
- Objective:
- To support polio eradication by identifying and investigating cases of Acute Flaccid Paralysis (AFP).
- To monitor immunisation campaigns and ensure zero transmission of wild polio virus.
- Key Functions:
- Disease Surveillance: Tracks AFP cases and conducts lab-confirmed verification.
- Vaccination Support: Assists in pulse polio campaigns and routine immunisation.
- Capacity Building: Trains state and district health officials on surveillance protocols.
- Integrated Health Role: Now supports measles-rubella elimination and control of other Vaccine-Preventable Diseases.
- Staff Deployment: Over 200 field units led by Surveillance Medical Officers (SMOs) spread across all states and union territories.
- This will eventually integrate with the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP).
