Rajasthan govt, Girl Effect India launch ‘Teeka Talk’ to increase HPV vaccination awareness
Teeka Talk is an initiative that provides parents, adolescents and communities with trusted information on HPV vaccination and cervical cancer prevention.
The Government of Rajasthan has launched ‘Teeka Talk’, an initiative in collaboration with Girl Effect India to build greater awareness and engagement around Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination among girls across the state.
The initiative was launched on Friday at a meeting chaired by Dr Madhu Rateshwar, Director, RCH, Government of Rajasthan, and attended by 60 stakeholders from the Health, Education, and Women and Child Development (WCD) departments. The meeting focused on strengthening inter-department coordination and building community engagement around HPV vaccination.
Rajasthan currently provides free HPV vaccination to girls aged 14-15 years at government health facilities. The initiative comes against the backdrop of India’s significant rice in cervical cancer cases. Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women in the country, with 78,499 women diagnosed and 42,392 deaths reported, according to NCRP–ICMR 2024 data.
HPV vaccination can prevent infections caused by the types of HPV responsible for most cervical cancers. Administering the vaccine at the recommended age can therefore offer girls protection against cervical cancer later in life.
Teeka Talk, launched by the non-profit Girl Effect India, aims to spread awareness and educate parents, caregivers and educators about the HPV vaccine. It features a WhatsApp chatbot that provides credible, easy-to-understand information in English and Hindi, with videos, visual stories, FAQs, and other content that explains HPV vaccination in simple terms.
At the launch, Dr Madhu Rateshwar, Director, RCH, Government of Rajasthan, said: “Rajasthan is committed to ensuring that every eligible adolescent girl and her family has access to the information and support they need to make informed decisions about HPV vaccination. Our collaboration with Girl Effect India through Teeka Talk will help strengthen these efforts and bring reliable information closer to families across the state.”
Kavita Ayyagari, Country Director, Girl Effect India, said: “For parents, a new vaccine can naturally bring questions about its safety, benefits and whether their daughter needs it. Teeka Talk is designed to make it easier for families to find clear, trustworthy answers—through schools, communities, parent engagement, and digital platforms. By addressing questions in a language and format that families understand, we want to help parents feel informed and confident about HPV vaccination.”
The Rajasthan launch aims to strengthen awareness and engagement around HPV vaccination through better coordination between departments. Insights from Jaipur, Dausa and Kotputli districts shaped implementation discussions, while representatives from the Health, Education and WCD departments explored ways to expand outreach within communities.
The next phase will focus on rolling out the initiative across departments and districts, with greater engagement among schools, parents and communities, while ensuring that eligible girls and their families have access to reliable information on HPV vaccination.