Maharashtra crosses 100,000 Covid vaccinations

Maharashtra went past the mark of vaccinating 100,000 healthcare workers (HCWs) after it inoculated 35,816 HCWs — its highest so far in a day — across 477 centres in the state on Monday. Maharashtra and Mumbai on Monday also recorded their lowest daily Covid-19 figures since May 16 (254 days) and April 24 (280 days), respectively.

Maharashtra added 1,842 fresh Covid-19 cases, taking its tally to 2,010,948. Mumbai, meanwhile, added 348 new cases to take its tally to 306,398. The active cases in the state stood at 43,561, while the active caseload of Mumbai stood at 6,159.

The state also reported 30 fatalities, of which seven are from Mumbai. The death toll rose to 50,815. Of the 30 deaths reported, 12 occurred in the past 48 hours and one in the last week. The remaining 17 deaths are from the period before past week.

So far, the state has vaccinated 135,701 HCWs in the drive since January 16 across the state, said Pradeep Vyas, principal secretary, health department. He added that on Monday 265 HCWs were given shots of Covaxin across six centres in the state. On Monday, the state recorded a turnout of 74%, the official added.

The health department on Monday increased their vaccination centres from 290 on Saturday to 477. The turnout has increased after allowing HCWs, who are not on the list for that particular days’s session, to take their vaccination shot.

In the two districts of Mumbai, so far, 17,164 HCWs have been vaccinated, the health department said. Mumbai reported a 77% turnout on Monday with 5,005 HCWs vaccinated at 10 centres and 65 vaccination teams were in action.

According to data of the health department, Dhule, Wardha, Bhandara, Osmanabad, Satara districts reported over 100% turnout. Dhule district topped with 144% turnout as 864 HCWs were vaccinated, followed by Wardha with 120% turnout as 1,315 HCWs were inoculated.

Bhandara district reported 113% turnout as against the targeted number of beneficiaries with 565 HCWs getting vaccinated. Osmanabad reported 106% turnout and Satara district reported 101% turnout, the data added.

Meanwhile, Raigad district reported 40% turnout against the targeted beneficiaries on Monday with 321 HCWs getting vaccinated. Nanded district saw a turnout at 43%, while Aurangabad district reported a turnout of 48%. Nandurbar district and Solapur district reported a turnout of 50% and 51%, respectively.

The vaccination drive will not take place on Tuesday and on January 30 owing to preparation for the Polio vaccination drive on January 31, the department said.

Senior health department officials said issues with CoWIN app persists in some pockets, but it is not hampering the inoculation drive. The official added that so far there have been no serious reports of adverse effects following immunisation in the state.