Muslim Clerics Fighting Polio in India

This article details the polio campaign in Uttar Pradesh, which aims to vaccinate 50 million children in India’s most populous state. The campaign is focused in the state’s Muslim neighbourhoods, which, according to the article, is said to be the source of nearly three-quarters of the new polio cases reported. In these areas, villagers are refusing vaccination due to rumours that the polio vaccine would sterilise their children.

According to the article, Muslim clerics and community leaders are urging Muslim families in Uttar Pradesh to immunise their children with the polio vaccine. Clerics are accompanying local health workers to the homes of individuals and personally informing Muslim families about the importance of the polio vaccine. In one case, a cleric went into the home of a long-time polio resister and convinced him to vaccinate his children. Shortly after, other members in the neighbourhood agreed to accept the vaccinations.

Clerics and community leaders are also using local television to raise awareness about the polio vaccine.