India, March 15 -- As the UT administration launches a fresh push to vaccinate girls against cervical cancer, Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine hesitancy persists, fuelled by the contentious history of Gardasil vaccine in India. To combat the high burden of cervical cancer, India's second most common cancer in women, the central government launched a nationwide free HPV vaccination campaign on February 28. The initiative targets girls aged 14, providing a single-dose free of cost vaccine in government hospitals to reduce cancer incidence.

Central government has included a US based quadrivalent vaccine, Gardasil in the national immunisation program. Despite the free availability of vaccine in Government Multi Specialty Hospital (GMSH-16)...