Eradication close with 94% drop in polio cases

New Delhi: Jan 13, 2011

India has seen a 94% decline in polio cases, giving the country a real chance to finally eradicate the crippling disease. Compared to 741 cases of polio in 2009, India recorded just 42 cases in 2010. The number of affected districts too saw a sharp fall from 90 in 2008, 56 in 2009 to just 17 in 2010. The last six months have seen the lowest number of polio cases during the high transmission season (July-September) in any year. Polio hotbed Uttar Pradesh reported just 10 polio cases in 2010 compared to 602 cases in 2009. The state has also not reported a single polio case since April 2010. Bihar, another state badly affected with polio virus, has also reported a sharp drop.

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