Vaccines are among the greatest achievements in the history of medicine — cheap, safe, and capable of preventing diseases that once killed or disabled millions of children. India runs one of the largest immunization programmes in the world, and it has driven remarkable gains in child survival. Yet not every child is reached. World Immunization Week, observed in the last week of April, is a moment to celebrate the progress and to focus on closing the gap. This guide explains where India stands and how it is reaching the children still being missed.
The power of vaccines
Immunization is one of the most cost-effective health interventions ever devised. A handful of vaccines given in the first years of life protect a child against diseases like tuberculosis, diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, measles, rubella and hepatitis B — illnesses that once killed or crippled huge numbers of children. India's Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) provides these vaccines free of cost, and the country's success in eliminating polio and reducing measles deaths shows what immunization can achieve at scale.
India's progress
The numbers tell a story of steady improvement. Full immunization coverage among young children rose to about 76% in NFHS-5 (2019-21), up from 62% a few years earlier — a substantial gain — and recent government administrative data point to even higher coverage. Crores of children are vaccinated every year. This progress has saved countless young lives and is one of the quiet triumphs of Indian public health.
Mission Indradhanush: reaching the missed
Averages hide the children who slip through. That is the focus of Mission Indradhanush, launched in 2014 to raise full immunization by finding and vaccinating the children and pregnant women that routine services miss — especially in remote, tribal, urban-slum and hard-to-reach areas. Through successive intensified phases, it has reached crores of additional children and pregnant women, and it now uses the U-WIN digital platform (modelled on CoWIN) to register and track every beneficiary and their due doses. The strategy is simple and powerful: go to the children who cannot easily come to the clinic.
Why some children are still missed
The remaining gap has practical and social causes:
- Distance and access — families far from health facilities, in areas with weak rural healthcare.
- Migration — mobile families whose children miss follow-up doses.
- Awareness — parents unaware of the schedule or the importance of completing all doses.
- Hesitancy — in some places, fear or misinformation about vaccines.
Each requires a different response — outreach, reminders, and above all trust.
Immunization and the bigger picture
Vaccines do not work alone. A well-immunised child is far better protected, but health also depends on nutrition, clean water and access to care when illness strikes — including hospitalisation under Ayushman Bharat. Immunization is a cornerstone of the broader goal of health for all.
What you can do
- Ensure the children in your life are fully immunised — and completed all doses on schedule.
- Counter misinformation — share accurate information about vaccine safety and benefits.
- Support child-health NGOs that run immunization awareness and outreach.
- Remind and help families around you to keep their children's vaccinations up to date.
Every fully immunised child is a life protected against diseases that once took a terrible toll. India's immunization story is one of huge progress — finishing it means reaching the very last child. This World Immunization Week, help make that happen. To support child-health organisations, find verified NGOs on NGOLists.
Further reading on NGOLists
- Child Malnutrition in India: Why It Persists and What Works
- Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY: Eligibility, Coverage and How to Apply in 2026
- Rural Healthcare Access in India: Why the Gap Persists and What Can Close It
- World Health Day: Bridging India's Urban-Rural Healthcare Gap
- How CSR Funds Actually Reach Beneficiaries: A Transparency Explainer