India introduces human papillomavirus vaccination

On 28 February 2026 India's prime minister Narendra Modi launched a free human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination campaign aiming to vaccinate 11.5 million girls aged 14 within 90 days. The vaccines are given free of charge at public health facilities, and after the campaign the programme will be folded into India's Universal Immunization Programme. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus endorsed the initiative, which targets cervical cancer — a disease that disproportionately affects low- and middle-income countries and accounts for more than 300,000 deaths among women worldwide each year. Measured by the number of people covered in a single campaign, this is the largest cervical cancer prevention programme to date.