GB Nagar targets 50,000 doses for mega vax drive

The inoculation drive will be carried out at over 130 government-run Covid vaccination centres across the district

The Gautam Budh Nagar health department has set a target of administering 50,000 doses for the mega Covid-19 vaccination drive to be held on Monday. Officials said that around 80% of the target will be for second dose beneficiaries.

A health worker administers a dose of Covid-19 vaccine, at a primary health centre in Noida Sector 22 on Saturday. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

The inoculation drive will be carried out at over 130 government-run Covid vaccination centres (CVCs) across the district.

“Out of total 134 CVCs, 25 will be in Dankaur block, 30 in Dadri block and 25 in Jewar block, in order to focus on rural blocks of the district. These CVCs have been created in government schools, bus stands and community centres. Each CVC will have a target of 300 doses on an average,” said Dr Sunil Kumar Sharma, chief medical officer, GB Nagar.

However, Sharma said that the two government hospitals in the district -- the district hospital and the Government Institute of Medical Sciences -- will have a target of 1,800 doses each as they witness high footfall.

Dr Neeraj Tyagi, district immunisation officer, said that about 80% of the 50,000 doses will be given to those requiring a second dose. “GB Nagar has administered a total of 2,389,658 doses so far, of which 1,669,353 were the first doses and 720,305 second doses. Now, we will try to administer as many second doses as possible so that we can have a fully vaccinated district soon,” said Dr Tyagi.

According to the officials, GB Nagar has almost completed administering the first dose of vaccine to the eligible people in the district.

The officials also said that the focus of the mega vaccination drive will also be on those aged above 45 years who have not got even a single dose of vaccine yet. According to the door-to-door surveillance carried out by the health department from September 7 to 16, a total of 56,489 people in this age group are yet to get Covid-19 vaccine in GB Nagar.

“Those above 45 years who have not been vaccinated yet are being encouraged by local ASHA workers to get the jabs. A majority of these people are from rural areas, and they have been made aware about Monday’s mega vaccination drive,” said a senior health official.

The last mega vaccination drive in GB Nagar was held on September 17 when the district could vaccinate only 25,160 people against a target of 32,000. The district health department is currently vaccinating around 8,000 people on an average everyday at about 30 government-run CVCs.