Mission Indradhanush / Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI)

Mission Indradhanush (MI) is a strategic health intervention designed to strengthen and accelerate the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP). It functions as a targeted “catch-up” campaign to expand full immunization coverage to children and pregnant women who have been left out, missed, or dropped out of the routine vaccination net.

Key Institutional Metadata for UPSC Prelims

• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).
• Launch Date: 25th December 2014 (Good Governance Day).
• Target Audience: Children up to 2 years of age (with extended catch-up provisions up to 5 years during special drives) and all pregnant women.
• Core Philosophy: Modeled after the operational success of the Pulse Polio Programme, it uses intensive tracking, micro-planning, and designated social mobilization windows.

Core Objectives and Strategic Evolution

Universal Immunisation Coverage

The baseline rate of full immunization coverage in India was expanding at an incremental rate of approximately 1% per annum prior to 2014. Mission Indradhanush was introduced to accelerate this growth to over 6.7% per annum to achieve a minimum of 90% full immunization coverage across all districts, which has successfully reached 98.4% as of January 2026.

Targeting High-Risk and Vulnerable Populations

The mission prioritizes underserved geographical zones, urban slums, remote tribal pockets, migratory corridors, and construction sites showing historically low routine immunization indicators.

Epidemiological Scope: Disease Matrix

The initiative provides free-of-cost vaccines against life-threatening childhood and maternal conditions. While the original phase targeted seven primary conditions (symbolized by the seven colors of the rainbow), the programmatic scope expands dynamically through the integrated Universal Immunisation Programme framework.

Nationally Administered Vaccines

• Diphtheria
• Pertussis (Whooping Cough)
• Tetanus (including the indigenously manufactured Tetanus-diphtheria (Td) vaccine integrated in 2026)
• Poliomyelitis (Oral Polio Vaccine and Inactivated Polio Vaccine)
• Childhood Tuberculosis (BCG)
• Measles and Rubella (MR)
• Hepatitis B
• Meningitis and Pneumonia caused by Haemophilus Influenzae type b (Hib)
• Rotavirus Diarrhea

Sub-National / Region-Specific Additions

• Japanese Encephalitis (JE): Administered exclusively in pre-identified endemic districts.
• Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV): Scaled across high-burden states to reduce infant mortality from pneumococcal pneumonia.
• Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine: Nationally introduced in early 2026 for girls aged 14 years to protect against cervical cancer.

Chronological Trajectory of Intensified Phases

To sustain momentum and bridge critical drop-out gaps, the Ministry launched successive iterations of the Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI).

Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI) – October 2017

Launched from Vadnagar, Gujarat, this iteration focused on select districts and urban centers experiencing sluggish coverage rates. It aimed to attain the 90% full immunization milestone rapidly by utilizing multi-ministerial convergence.

Intensified Mission Indradhanush 2.0 – December 2019 to March 2020

This phase targeted 272 districts across 27 states with a specific focus on hard-to-reach tribal blocks in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. It aligned directly with India’s commitment to achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 3) of ending preventable child deaths by 2030.

Intensified Mission Indradhanush 3.0 – February 2021

Rolled out as a dedicated recovery campaign to identify and immunize children and pregnant women whose routine immunization schedules were disrupted due to the containment bottlenecks of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Intensified Mission Indradhanush 4.0 and 5.0 – 2022 to 2023

These phases built resilient routine immunization tracking mechanisms post-pandemic, ensuring complete saturation across 701 districts and transitioning the surveillance data into digital interfaces.

Four-Pillar Strategic Implementation Methodology

Meticulous Micro-planning

Health workers map out every individual hamlet, urban slum cluster, and temporary settlement. Micro-plans are refined at the Primary Health Centre (PHC) level to ensure vaccine storage units and vaccinators reach every corner during the intensive rounds.

Multi-Ministerial Convergence

The mission dismantles institutional silos by formally integrating non-health departments into the social mobilization process.

Intensive Social Mobilization

Utilizes a network of Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs), Auxiliary Nurse Midwives (ANMs), and civil society organizations like Rotary International to conduct door-to-door counseling and community mobilization campaigns.

Comprehensive Training of Health Workers

Frontline health professionals undergo structured training modules focusing on optimal cold-chain maintenance, adverse events following immunization (AEFI) management, and effective interpersonal communication.

Technology Infrastructure Supporting the Mission

U-WIN Digital Platform

Following the technological blueprint of the CoWIN platform, the U-WIN portal was scaled nationwide for the end-to-end digitization of the maternal and child vaccination ecosystem. It provides real-time registration, location-based center mapping, automated SMS reminders for subsequent doses, and instant digital vaccination certificates.

Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN)

An indigenously designed smartphone-based application that digitizes vaccine inventories and tracks storage temperatures in real-time across multiple cold-chain points. This platform prevents stock-outs and limits vaccine wastage by ensuring structural accountability.