Centre’s Decision To Vaccinate Children Against Covid 19 'Unscientific', Says Senior Epidemiologist At AIIMS

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation on Saturday night and announced that vaccination for children between 15 and 18 years will commence from January 3. 

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New Delhi: Senior epidemiologist at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Dr Sanjay K Rai, termed the Centre’s decision to vaccinate children against Covid-19 'unscientific', as reported by news agency PTI. The principal investigator of Covaxin trials on adults and children, at the apex institute on Sunday, said that this decision would not yield any additional benefits. 

Rai, who is also the president of Indian Public Health Association, said that data from other countries that have started inoculating children should be analysed before implementing the decision in India. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation on Saturday night and announced that vaccination for children between 15 and 18 years will commence from January 3. 

In a tweet tagging the Prime Minister’s Office, Dr Rai wrote, "I am a great fan of PM Modi for his selfless service to nation and taking right decisions at right time. But I am completely disappointed with his unscientific decision on children vaccination."

Writing further about his viewpoint, Rai said that any intervention should have a clear cut objective. The objective is to either reduce severity of death or prevent the infection. “But according to whatever knowledge we have about vaccines, they are unable to make a significant dent in the infection. In some countries, people are getting infected even after taking booster shots,” he added. 

"Also, 50,000 breakthrough infections are being reported per day in the UK. So this proves that vaccination is not preventing coronavirus infection but vaccines are effective in preventing severity and death," PTI quoted Rai as saying.