Progress toward poliomyelitis eradication--India, January 2004-May 2005.

Since 1988, the global incidence of polio has decreased by more than 99%, and three World Health Organization (WHO) regions (Americas, Western Pacific, and European) have been certified as polio-free . India, the largest of the six countries where polio remains endemic, experienced a large polio outbreak (1,600 cases) in 2002. Since then, the Government of India (GOI) has accelerated its polio eradication activities by increasing the number and quality of supplementary immunization activities (SIAs), which reduced the number of reported cases to 225 in 2003, 134 in 2004, and 18 in 2005 (as of June 18). During 2004 and early 2005, taking advantage of the geographic restriction of wild poliovirus (WPV) circulation, GOI and its partners launched several immunization and surveillance strategies to maximize the probability of eliminating poliovirus transmission in India. With continued high-quality interventions, interruption of WPV transmission in India by the end of 2005 appears feasible. This report summarizes progress toward polio elimination during January 2004-May 2005 toward that end.