Timeline of vaccination efforts in India (Ancient time - till 1977)

Table II. Timeline of vaccination efforts in India (Ancient time - till 1977)   Ancient time                                                                              Smallpox known to the people   3000 BC                   -                                                                                      Smallpox is believed to have originated from India or Egypt   300 BC                     -                                                                                      Description of smallpox in Sanskrit literature 910 AD                     Smallpox was differentiated from Measles by Abu Bakr    1000 AD                   Inoculation documented from China                             Inoculation was reportedly practiced in India also    1545 AD                                                                                                          Major smallpox outbreak reported from Goa, India   1600                                                                                                                Documented evidences of practice of inoculation (variolation) from India   1767                                                                                                                 Dr Holwell gave a description of practice of inoculation in India to College of Physicians in London.   1774                        Benjamin Jesty did experiment on his wife and two children by injecting cow-pox matter. 1796                         Edward Jenner conducted the famous observation on milk-maids. 1798                         Jenner’s observations were published and smallpox vaccine was discovered   1802                                                                                                                First documented smallpox vaccination was done in India   1804                                                                                                                The practice of inoculation was banned in some provinces of India 1810                         Gennaro Galbiati, an Italian physician, used cows for vaccine production   1820s                                                                                                               Vaccination continued to increase in India specially Bombay and Bengal presidency   1830s-50s                                                                                                        Some initial research on smallpox vaccine conducted in India   1850s                                                                                                              Initial resistance to smallpox vaccination due to multiple reasons   1870                          Animal vaccine production in USA   1876                          First vaccine farm in Lakeview, New Jersey, USA 1879                         First laboratory vaccine produced by Louis Pasteur for Chicken Cholera   1890                                                                                                                First animal vaccine depot was set up in Shillong 1892                                                                                                                                                                         Compulsory Vaccination Act passed by Government of India 1893                                                                                                                                                                         Cholera vaccine trial conducted in Agra, India 1896                                                                                                                                                                         Epidemic Act was passed in the wake of plague epidemic in India 1897                                                                                                                                                                         First plague vaccine was developed by Dr Haffkine in Laboratory, in Bombay (now Mumbai) 1898                                                                                                                                                                         Initial stringent regulations for vaccine production released 1899                                                                                                                                                                         Plague Laboratory was set up in Bombay (Later on in 1925, named as Haffkine Institute)

1902                                                                                                                  A few deaths were reported after plague vaccination in Punjab Province of India, major set-back to plague vaccination and the reputation of Haffkine (years later, deaths were found due to programmatic errors). 1904-1908                                                                                                        Typhoid vaccine trial was done on British Army officials posted to India (and Egypt also) 1909                          Lucien Camus develop first air dried smallpox vaccine in Paris 1910-1930                                                                                                           A number of vaccine institutes set up in different provinces of the country 1948                                                                                                                    BCG Laboratory in Guindy, Madras (now Chennai) set up BCG vaccination was started at pilot level 1951                                                                                                                 BCG mass campaigns were started in India 1958                         World Health Assembly passed a resolution to eradicate smallpox 1962                                                                                                                  National Smallpox Eradication Programme launched National Tuberculosis Control Programme started with BCG vaccine being offered to the people 1974                                                                                                                                                                         WHO announces Expanded Programme for Immunization 1975                                                                                                                                                                         Last case of smallpox was reported 1977                          Last case of smallpox was reported from the world        India declared smallpox free