New Delhi: Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu has sparked a heated debate after claiming that India may be giving “way too many vaccines” to infants, linking the country’s rising autism rates to excessive childhood immunisation.
Sridhar Vembu has claimed that India is giving “way too many vaccines” to infants and linked this to a rapid rise in autism cases. In a detailed post on X, Vembu urged parents to take a new report seriously, saying it shows vaccines could be “the most significant preventable driver” of autism.
The report, released by the McCullough Foundation, reviewed more than 300 studies and claimed that early and combined childhood vaccinations pose higher autism risks than genetics, pollution, or premature birth. His remarks have drawn attention not just for their content but also for their timing, as India continues to push for stronger immunisation coverage across rural and urban areas.
Sridhar Vembu cites report on autism risk
The report ranks vaccines above genetics, pollution, and premature birth as possible risk factors. “Parents should take this analysis seriously. I believe there is increasing evidence that we are giving way too many vaccines to very young children. This is spreading in India too and we are seeing a rapid increase in autism in India,” Vembu wrote.
The report claims that 79% of the studies reviewed show evidence consistent with an autism link, adding that unvaccinated children consistently show lower autism risk. It includes contributions from Peter McCullough and Andrew Wakefield, the latter known for a retracted paper that falsely linked the MMR vaccine to autism.
Earlier this year, Vembu also questioned the need for giving the Hepatitis B vaccine to newborns, which drew criticism from doctors. He, however, maintains that it is “not anti-science to ask such common sense questions.”
However, the Indian Academy of Pediatrics, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend that vaccines are safe and effective. They point out that multiple large-scale studies have found no connection between childhood vaccines and autism.
Health professionals continue to stress that vaccines are one of the most effective public health tools, and any misinformation could risk reversing decades of progress in disease prevention.
Trump Raised Vaccine-related issue
Recently, US President Donald Trump also reignited debate on the vaccine-autism issue. During a recent announcement at the White House, Trump suggested that vaccines could be linked to an increased risk of autism. However, he did not provide any new evidence or research to support the claim.
Public health officials in the United States immediately countered his statement, reiterating that decades of scientific research have found no link between vaccines and autism. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) maintain that vaccines are safe, effective, and essential for preventing serious diseases.
Trump had previously expressed similar views during his presidency, often questioning the number and frequency of vaccines given to children. His renewed comments have once again sparked concern among health experts, who warn that such statements from high-profile figures can deepen public mistrust and fuel vaccine hesitancy.
