Highlights
- India’s COVID-19 vaccine drive was rolled out on January 16 by PM Modi
- Over 25 lakh people have got vaccine against COVID-19 as on January 28, 2PM
- Government is urging health and frontline workers to get the vaccine shot
New Delhi: The Union health ministry has issued detailed guidelines to the states and Union territories to ensure that there is no wastage of COVID-19 vaccines and for that purpose, the vaccinators at the session sites have been allowed to add additional beneficiaries, apart from the 100 scheduled for the day, in case they do not turn up. Responding to a question at a press conference here on how the ministry is dealing with vaccine wastage across the country, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Thursday (January 28) said when the vaccination programme was rolled out, a 10-per cent wastage was factored in.
We have issued detailed guidelines to the states and Union territories on how to avoid wastage of vaccines. We have made our digital platform more flexible and have permitted that apart from the scheduled 100 beneficiaries, the person handling the vaccination session at a particular site can add additional people as long as they are part of the database. This is being done to ensure that there is a lesser wastage of the vaccines. Going ahead, we would also be sharing the data of vaccine wastage as we analyse it, he said.
Also Read: ASHA, India’s Female Health Workers On Rural Front Line Get COVID-19 Shot In The First Phase
Mr Bhushan said the number of people vaccinated against COVID-19 in India since the nationwide vaccination drive was rolled out had reached 25,07,556 till 2 pm on Thursday (January 28). Lakshadweep (83.4 per cent), Odisha (50.7 per cent), Haryana (50 per cent), the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (48.3 per cent), Rajasthan (46.8 per cent), Tripura (45.6 per cent), Mizoram (40.5 per cent), Telangana (40.3 per cent), Andhra Pradesh (38.1 per cent), Karnataka (35.6 per cent) and Madhya Pradesh (35.5 per cent) are among the better-performing states with an over-35-per cent vaccination coverage of healthcare workers each, he said.
On the other hand, Tamil Nadu (15.7 per cent), Delhi (15.7 per cent), Jharkhand (14.7 per cent), Uttarakhand (17.1 per cent), Chhattisgarh (20.6 per cent) and Maharashtra (20.7 per cent) have a less than 21 per cent vaccination coverage and need to improve, Mr Bhushan said.
Also Read: Vaccinated People May Still Transmit COVID-19, Warns England’s Chief Medic
The government has been urging healthcare workers, including doctors and nurses, not to hesitate to get vaccinated against COVID-19, stressing that it is their social responsibility to get inoculated. At a recent press conference, NITI Aayog Member (Health) Dr VK Paul said the concerns about adverse effects of the vaccine causing serious problems seem to be “unfounded, negligible and insignificant” as of now.
We would like to reassure you with data that these two vaccines are safe, they do not excite undue reactogenicity and are being accepted increasingly. They are also highly immunogenic, he had said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV – Dettol Banega Swasth India campaign is an extension of the five-year-old Banega Swachh India initiative helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. It aims to spread awareness about critical health issues facing the country. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign highlights the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children to prevent maternal and child mortality, fight malnutrition, stunting, wasting, anaemia and disease prevention through vaccines. Importance of programmes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Mid-day Meal Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyan and the role of Aganwadis and ASHA workers are also covered. Only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and become a Swasth or healthy India. The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene.
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