By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: With the number of balance and unutilised Covid-19 vaccine doses piling up to 18 crore, the Centre has sent a fresh reminder to states to come up with district-specific action plans and raise the inoculation coverage in areas most vulnerable.
So far, the Union health ministry has provided more than 121 crore doses to the states. There are 18.04 crore doses available with states.
Overall, nearly 1.11 billion shots have been administered in the country so far.
The reminder comes as the government launches a door-to-door vaccination campaign targeting adults who have missed out on the second dose and also those who have not taken their first dose.
Last week, in a review meeting with officials from nearly 45 districts with low vaccination, PM Narendra Modi had asked authorities to prepare specific strategies for each village and town to take the inoculation level closer to the national average.
He suggested micro strategies keeping in mind the experience so far to go for saturation coverage by addressing the gaps at local level while also instructing authorities to make specific strategies for each village and town.
The PM had suggested that teams of 20-25 can be formed and directed authorities to prepare region-wise timetables for local goals.
Nearly 80 per cent of India’s eligible adult population has been administered the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine while 38 per cent has been fully vaccinated, the Union Health Ministry said on Friday.
During an interactive webinar on the ongoing ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ campaign, Additional Secretary in the Union Health Ministry Manohar Agnani said that under the campaign, by November 30, the government wants the first dose coverage of COVID-19 vaccination in the country to reach at least 90 per cent.
“Also maximum of the people who are overdue for their second dose should also take the second dose by then,” Agnani said.
The government recently launched the month-long ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ campaign for house-to-house COVID-19 vaccination of those who are yet to take a dose and those whose second dose is overdue.
“Going by India’s current vaccination pace we can claim with confidence that the world’s largest adult vaccination programme is well on track since its launch on January 16.
“To date, nearly 80 per cent of the eligible population in India has been vaccinated against COVID-19 with the first dose, while 38 per cent has been fully vaccinated,” he stated.
In several states, 100 per cent of the adult population has received the first dose of the vaccine.
He expressed confidence that with India’s current vaccine delivery capacity, the entire adult population will soon be covered.
The Union Health Ministry has also written to several states and union territories asking them to prioritise administering the second dose to beneficiaries who have not got themselves jabbed even after the expiry of the prescribed interval between the two doses, official sources said.
Noting that more than 12 crore beneficiaries are due for their second dose of COVID-19 vaccine, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Thursday urged the health ministers of states and UTs to ensure that the entire adult population is covered with the first dose during the ongoing ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ campaign and those who are due for the second dose are motivated to take it.
On Friday, the ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ campaign got underway in the national capital.
According to a poster issued by the Delhi government, the drive will be carried out from November 12-27.
(With PTI Inputs)
