DISINFO: WHO and Bill Gates infected thousands of children with polio in India
SUMMARY
Three years ago there was a scandal in India, when the World Health Organisation, with support from Bill Gates, was intensively vaccinating children [against polio]. As a result, the number of children who contracted polio increased by half a million. And right after they were kicked the hell out of there, the number of polio cases dropped to their statistical norm.
RESPONSE
This is a conspiracy theory based on recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about the World Health Organisation and Bill Gates. This TV broadcast advances a popular conspiracy theory making rounds on the internet. It has been extensively debunked by the PolitiFact. There is no evidence that half a million children in India were infected with polio. According to the World Health Organisation, in very rare cases it is possible to contract polio from vaccines, but that happens in approximately 1 in 2.7 million cases. In 2009, only 15 cases of vaccine-derived polio infection were reported in India. In 2017, India celebrated 6 years since its last wild polio case. The Gates Foundation, which is devoted to advancing healthcare and education worldwide and eradicating poverty, has long supported polio vaccination efforts in India. In March 2014, the World Health Organization declared Southeast Asia, including India, to be a polio-free region as a result of vaccination. See a similar case claiming that Bill Gates vaccination leaves 496,000 children paralysed in India. More disinformation cases on Bill Gates are available here.