Hard to believe that kids immunization, vaccines still don't reach some remotest villages.

India’s immunization program is the one that aimed at providing vaccinations to children and pregnant women every year. These life-saving vaccines are mandatory for, they protect children from falling prey to dangerous ailments. Protecting children from threatening diseases like polio, measles, smallpox etc. by preventing millions of deaths every year is the main purpose of immunization programs. Still, India has a large number of children who are not vaccinated. Also, during the pandemic times, when everything was shut, government and several organizations had still made it a point that vaccines reach children on time by conducting vaccination drives without fail. Still, owing to lack of awareness, information and due to lack of transport facilities, unfortunately many parents failed to get their child vaccinated on time. This is really scary. It is so unfortunate that innocent children succumb to deadly diseases and the cost of which, they shall have to pay for a lifetime. Here is where people like Dole Singh have stepped in. Fondly called as a warrior on immunization mission, Dole and his team primarily aim to promote immunization programs and take them to the reach of children living in the remotest parts of the country.

Can we even imagine how difficult it is to the life of a child who is not vaccinated? What if he succumbs to threatening diseases that curb the rest of his life? The mistake lies solely on the part of the elders who couldn’t think of their future. Be it lack of resources, lack of knowledge and understanding, or lack of anything – nothing should bar the parents or care takers from ruining the innocent lives. But this fact isn’t been properly paid heed to and the affected ones are those living mostly in the remotest parts of the country and the people of tribal communities. Who goes to them and tells them how important it is to get their children vaccinated? Who gets them to the vaccination centers that are usually away from their habitats? This is where our health workers step in. Health workers travel to every part of the country and make sure that the people are aware of the immunization programs, get them to the vaccination centers and immunize children and pregnant women. Quite often health care workers concentrate on their area of allotment and make sure they reach out to the population there. Here is the story of one such health worker.

Hailing from Himachal Pradesh, Dole Singh serves as a health worker. Large mountains, running streams and dense tree covers is what he is surrounded with. He reaches out to people living in the areas where phone signals don’t work and no transport system finds its way through.  “I wake up at 4 each day, reach the health care center by 5, collect vaccines and travel for an hour to reach the ropeway by 7. All I see is just children and they getting vaccinated. Nothing else”, he says.

By crossing water streams and rocky paths, he reaches the villagers to give their children, their timely vaccines. Not on foot, not on boat, not on bicycle, the way he has to travel to reach the villages is nothing less than an adventurous trip. He treks, rows, walks, and takes ropeways to reach people. That’s what makes him different from others. He doesn’t care for the difficulties on the path and like a warrior, he sets ahead. He is thus called the “vaccine warrior” on a mission to immunize children.

Our sole aim is to ensure that measles and rubella that spread in children aged nine months to fifteen years old is totally eradicated just as polio has been , he explains their main aim as dedicated health care workers.

Hats off to this Vaccine Superhero who is tirelessly striving not only to deliver life-saving measles and rubella vaccine to children but also is spreading awareness on these hazardous diseases among children. The selfless work of health care workers like Dole Singh who put their country and people ahead of their own comfort and safety are truly the warriors.