Every year on 24 October, World Polio Day is celebrated.
It is celebrated to highlight global efforts towards a polio-free world and to honor the contribution made by frontline health workers in the fight against polio.
The theme of World Polio Day 2023 is “A healthier future for mothers and children.”
In 1985, Rotary International introduced World Polio Day to honor the contributions of Jonas Salk, the head medical researcher in the research team that created the first vaccine for polio.
This year, on January 13, India completed 12 years of being polio-free, which is considered a remarkable achievement.
The World Health Organization declared India polio-free in 2014.
The last case of polio in India was found in 2011.
India is vigilant to prevent the re-entry of poliovirus into the country from neighbouring Afghanistan and Pakistan.
