Covid Vaccination: Centre Asks States, UTs To Increase Pace And Coverage Of Second Dose

Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan highlighted the sizeable number of eligible beneficiaries, who have not received their second dose of vaccine.

(File Photo/ Getty)

New Delhi: The Central government on Saturday asked the states and Union Territories to focus on those beneficiaries, who are waiting for their second dose after their interval period has been over.

Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan highlighted the sizeable number of eligible beneficiaries, who have not received their second dose of vaccine.

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Reviewing the progress of Covid-19 vaccination with the Health Secretaries and Mission Directors of National Health Mission (NHM) of the states and Union Territories through video conference, he noted that the detailed line-lists of due beneficiaries can be utilized for preparing a district-wise second dose administration plan involving the District Magistrate for execution in a time-bound manner.

The states and Union Territories were also urged to improve the momentum of vaccination and accelerate the coverage as the country moves forward to vaccinate all the eligible population by end of the year under the nation-wide Covid vaccination drive.

“So, far 71.24 crore first doses covering 76% of the eligible population and 30.06 Cr second doses covering 32.0% of the eligible population has been administered the COVID vaccines,” the Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry said in a release.

The states and Union Territories were also suggested to review the progress of such district-wise plan daily to ensure saturation of all eligible beneficiaries.

Besides, they were also advised to identify and prioritize districts having low coverage for focused action and explore requirement for mobilization efforts, addressing local challenges, need for additional Covid vaccination centres and improving access in rural areas.

The states and Union Territories were also requested to share their strategies to enhance second dose coverage.

The focus of the meeting was to urge the states and Union Territories to increase the pace of the countrywide vaccination and coverage of the second dose.

This comes in the backdrop of the country achieving the milestone of administering 100 crore doses on October 21.