India Completes & Celebrates Its First Polio Free Year Rotary International & Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare Continues The War Against Polio

Online, February 23, 2012 (Newswire.com) - In the wake of India achieving one year without a case of polio, the Rotary International in partnership with Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, is organizing Polio summit on 25th & 26th Feb at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. The crippling disease that held the world to ransom in the 1950's and 1960's has almost been eliminated with those two tiny drops of Oral Polio vaccine, a well thought out strategy, large financial resources and the dedication and commitment of thousands of devoted volunteers and international health agencies.

Rotary International, the volunteer arm of a global partnership dedicated to eradicate polio is hosting this Summit to commemorate India's polio-free year, to energize the nation and to maintain its commitment until the world is polio-free, and to map out the challenges remaining in global eradication of polio. The summit is aimed at sustaining the country's momentum towards eradicating polio by increasing awareness of the disease, securing strong support from government and other partners to promote routine immunization. According to recent reports, globally 2 billion children have been immunized, 5 million have been spared disability, and 250,000 deaths have been prevented through Global Polio Eradication Initiative, spearheaded by Rotary International. More than 1,000 government leaders, health officials, and Rotarians from India and neighboring countries, along with representatives from Rotary International, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, are expected to attend the event. Beside the Rotary International President Kalyan Banerjee, TRF trustee Chair Bill Boyd and international polio plus committee Chair Bob Scott and representatives from the endemic countries would be participating in this summit.

Rotary International (RI) President, Kalyan Banerjee says, "As an Indian, I am immensely proud of what Rotary has accomplished; however, we know this is not the end of our work. Rotary and our partners must continue to immunize children in India and in other countries until the goal of a polio-free world is finally achieved. The Polio Summit will help greatly in continuing advocacy with political, bureaucratic, and religious, as well as corporate and social, leaders and other organizations." Raja Sabu, past Rotary International President says, "India's success against the disease so far is historic and its victory over the virus in the coming years is very vital towards achieving the global eradication goal and Rotary club in the country is committed to the making of a Polio free India."

About Rotary International
　
Rotary International (RI) is a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations and helps build goodwill and peace in the world. RI was founded on February 23, 1905. There are more than 1.2 million Rotarians in 33,695 Rotary Clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas in the world. Rotary motto is "Service above self." In India, Rotary International established a separate committee in 1988, named the India National PolioPlus Society (INPPS), to exclusively steer Rotary's polio eradication programme in India.