Karnataka's pulse polio programme is facing an acute shortage of auxiliary nursing maids (ANMs). The north Karnataka districts, which seems to have a comeback of the deadly virus is affected with a lack of infrastructure. Although no concrete figures were disclosed on staff shortage in the nursing category, the reasons for the shortfall are attributed to the Karnataka government's halt in recruitment and training of nurses.

Dr. R K Kumaraswamy, project director, RCH (reproductive child health) told Pharmabiz.com that there was no shortage of nursing staff and that each of the 27 districts in the State was well represented with nurses.

Kalyan Banerjee, chairman, Rotary International's National Pulse Polio programme Committee said that the acute shortage of ANMs felt and it has been brought to the notice of the government. They hoped that the state government, which halted the recruitment and training of the ANMs three years ago, would look into the matter.

There is a 35-50 per cent immunisation gap in north Karnataka especially in the districts of Bellary, Raichur, Gulbarga, Koppal, Bagalkot, Haveri, Gadag, Davengere and Chitradurga. The State government must be on be alert, said Banerjee. After two years of zero incidence, there have been eight cases affected with polio in Bellary and one case from Bagalkot. These areas are reeling under severe drought, poor living conditions, with high level of poverty and illiteracy that attribute to the failure of children being immunised, he added.

The State government is expected to organise a statewide polio immunisation drive in early November besides a mop-up campaign which is being taken up in the 10 northern districts of the State.

The catch up campaign as it is referred to will be a door-to-door survey and is likely to coincide with the Sub-National immunisation which is expected to be held in the polio affected northern states in the country on November 9.

A proposal in this regard was mooted to the Karnataka government by the representatives of the Rotary International who met the chief minister SM Krishna in view of the polio relapse in the State.

Meanwhile the second phase of the mop-up campaign in the ten northern districts of Karnataka will continue on September 7, 8 and 9.

The Rotary International has also asked the State government to reactivate the district task forces, strengthen surveillance and constitute a high level committee for Pulse polio at the level of the minister for health or the State Chief Secretary.

The polio eradication programme had set its deadline as 2005. Karnataka will not be able to meet this target as it is crucial that no case of polio are reported for three consecutive years from 2000. But with cases surfacing in Bellary (8) and Raichur (1). Gulbarga, Koppal, Bagalkot, Haveri, Gadag, Davengere and Chitradurga are the other districts where polio cases are surfaced before 2000.

According to Giridhar Babu, representative, World Health Organisation said that any additional immunisation has to cover all the districts that are susceptible to the virus and the Raichur polio case was a child who had come down from Uttar Pradesh. The virus needs no travel documents and can spread across all frontiers, he stated.

The polio programme has been acclaimed as a success with the Rotary, state governments and health officers involving in it in large numbers. Giving allowance for errors in reporting and tabulating data, 90 percent of the children in the vulnerable age group which is from birth to two years of age would have been given polio drops and boosters.

For every one child reported as being infected, there could be 199 others carrying the virus. The immunisation gap according to rotary International could be anywhere between 30- 50 per cent.

India is one of the seven countries in the world that continues to witness polio cases. The polio eradication programme us being carried out by the Union government, state governments, WHO and UNICEF. For the extra round o polio immunisation, the State government will have to approach the Union government for the vaccine. The Union government spends Rs. 800 crore annually. The state department of health and family welfare has not however, revealed the expenses incurred by the State.