Thane civic body jabs 56K in 4 days of door-to-door vaccination drive against Covid

Thane Municipal Corporation survey findings reveal that 35% of those jabbed in door-to-door drive over four days had not taken a single vaccination dose against Covid earlier

More than 20,000 people who had not even taken their single dose of Covid-19 vaccine were found and vaccinated in a door-to-door survey conducted in the last four days by the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC).

Thane Municipal Corporation officials conduct door-to-door survey to carry out as much vaccination against Covid as possible. (PRAFUL GANGURDE/HT PHOTO)

Around 56,000 people were vaccinated in merely four days of the survey out of which 35% were those who had not taken a single dose.

Post-Diwali, there were around 5.35 lakh residents in the city who had not taken a single dose of vaccination, as per the TMC.

The vaccination centres continued to remain deserted with poor response across the city. Thus, the TMC initiated a door-to-door campaign to vaccinate as many as possible at the earliest. The door-to-door vaccination started on November 9 in every ward.

Dr Prasad Patil, immunisation officer, TMC, said, “On a daily basis, there are around 14,000 getting vaccinated over the last four days. From among these, around 5,000 on a daily basis have been given the first shot. Through this door-to-door campaign, we are preparing a pendency list of those who have not taken the first jab yet.”

“In every ward, we have set up a team that visits each society or cluster of buildings to collect vaccination data. They also vaccinate those who are due to get their second dose,” added a senior civic officer.

From among the 5.35 lakh residents who have not received a single jab of vaccination, TMC has managed to vaccinate 20,000 through door-to-door vaccination. The reluctance among the residents continues.

“Mostly, people have been saying that they did not want to get vaccinated during the festive period. It is easier for those who have taken the first dose to get vaccinated but it takes some convincing for those who have not taken a single jab,” added a doctor who is a part of the team that conducts door-to-door vaccination.

Areas like Mumbra and Rabodi, Lokmanya Nagar and Savarkar Nagar are some of the wards that have more number of people who have not taken the jab at all. Till now, TMC has vaccinated 19.30 lakh beneficiaries with at least the first dose. The city has a target of 18 lakh population. In order to reach out to more people who have not taken the first dose, various initiatives like withholding salaries of TMC employees who have not taken the jab and not permitting those who have not been vaccinated in TMT buses have been announced by the civic body.