{
  "id": 16486490,
  "title": "Navi Mumbai Marks World Polio Day With 300-Person Walkathon, Urges Continued Childhood Vaccination",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/25/navi-mumbai-marks-world-polio-day-with-300-person-walkathon-urges",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-10-25T14:15:26.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Press Journal",
    "slug": "free-press-journal",
    "url": "https://www.freepressjournal.in/mumbai/navi-mumbai-marks-world-polio-day-with-300-person-walkathon-urges-continued-childhood-vaccination"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Navi Mumbai recently celebrated World Polio Day with a significant walkathon attended by 300 participants at Mini Seashore. The event, organized by Sanofi | Dr. Reddy’s and various pediatric associations, highlighted the importance of childhood immunization and India's ongoing efforts to maintain its polio-free status. Dr. Jeetendra Gavhane, scientific convenor of the Navi Mumbai Association of Pediatrics, emphasized that India's polio-free status was achieved through years of consistent vaccination efforts and community involvement. He stressed the need for every child to receive the recommended polio vaccine doses to preserve this public health milestone.\n\nRotary President Dr. Sachin Murade echoed the importance of maintaining high vaccination coverage, even though poliovirus still exists in certain regions. He reminded that vigilance and adherence to immunization schedules are crucial since the virus can still spread globally. Dr. Vijay Yewale, head of pediatrics at Apollo Hospitals in Navi Mumbai, and a former IAP president, echoed similar sentiments. He urged parents to ensure their children receive all required vaccine doses according to the schedule and seek pediatric consultation if they have concerns about missed doses.\n\nIndia was officially declared polio-free in 2014 after massive immunization campaigns and surveillance. However, the wild poliovirus type 1 still circulates in Afghanistan and Pakistan, underscoring the necessity of sustained vaccination and surveillance to prevent potential re-introduction. World Polio Day, observed annually on October 24, aims to promote global eradication efforts and underscore the importance of vaccination, surveillance, and community participation in safeguarding children's health.",
  "summary": "Navi Mumbai: Around 300 people participated in a walkathon organised at Mini Seashore in Navi Mumbai to mark World Polio Day, with a focus on the importance of childhood immunisation and the need to sustain India’s polio-free status. The walkathon was organised by Sanofi | Dr. Reddy’s in association with the Navi Mumbai Association of Pediatrics and the Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP), Raigad…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}