Vaccine coverage improving, says health dept; asks priority groups to come forward for vaccination

ITANAGAR, 30 Apr: The health department on Friday said that there is improvement in the vaccine coverage of all the priority categories.

“Out of 2,12,289 total beneficiaries registered, 73 percent of registered healthcare workers (HCW) is covered with the first dose, 75 percent of frontline workers (FLW) is covered with first dose and about 33 percent of the estimated target of 3,54,281 beneficiaries (citizens above 45 years of age) has been covered with first dose so far. Overall, the state has vaccinated 2,43,043 beneficiaries, which includes the second dose,” it said in a statement.

Majority of the districts are performing well and other districts are augmenting/scaling up the coverage by increasing session sites and the number of sessions. Currently, the daily coverage is around 6,000 to 7,000 doses per day, it said.

Covid vaccination of priority groups (including HCWs, FLWs and citizens above 45 years of age) started on 16 January. The vaccines are available and given free of cost to all the categories in all the Covid vaccination centres. In order to get vaccinated, all eligible priority groups can either self-register or register online

through www.cowin.gov.in, or can register on the spot at a Covid vaccination centre.

Meanwhile, the department said that so far there have been 266 cases of mild adverse events following immunization. The commonest symptoms reported are fever, body ache, headache and not feeling well. There is no report of severe or serious AEFI due to Covid vaccination, it said.

The department said that “the vaccine is very safe and the increasing community participation, vaccine eagerness and confidence among the population are evident.”

The health & family welfare department appealed all eligible citizens not to be carried away by rumours circulating on social media and to come forward voluntarily for vaccination early.

It informed that there are 1,17,290 doses of vaccine available in the state, including doses in the districts, which were supplied free of cost by the Centre.

As per the consumption pattern in the districts, the existing number of doses in the state is projected to last approximately for the next 23 days, it said, adding that the government of India would continue to provide vaccines for the priority groups as and when required.