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Vaccine shortage: No jabbing for 18-45 age group in P’kula today
On Thursday, first and second doses of the vaccine will be administered only to beneficiaries above the age of 45. On May 24 and 25, only 200 slots were opened for the 18 to 45 age group in the district.
The Panchkula health department has run out of vaccines for the 18-45 age group, prompting it to suspend jabbing for this group on Thursday. No inoculations have been conducted for this group for the past two days.
On Thursday, first and second doses of the vaccine will be administered only to beneficiaries above the age of 45. On May 24 and 25, only 200 slots were opened for the 18 to 45 age group in the district.
Immunisation officer Dr Meenu Sasan said, “Over 5,000 doses were administered during the drive-through vaccination that took place last week. So we ran out of our stock. Only a few doses are left for the 18 to 45 age group, which have been reserved for those living in slum and rural areas.”
On Wednesday, 1, 347 persons were vaccinated in all.
Earlier, Rajeev Arora, additional chief secretary, health and family welfare, Haryana, had said: “Currently, vaccination sourcing is a controlled commodity. We are getting vaccines for the 45-plus group from the government of India, and for the 18 to 45 group, the state government is directly coordinating with the company. But this is also regulated and we get limited supply, and there is nothing much that we can do.”
Though the vaccination drive has not been stopped for even a day in Panchkula, getting a jab has not been easy task for residents. Days after starting the drive for the 18-plus group, the administration stopped giving the first dose to the 45-plus group. And now, it has halted jabbing for the 18-plus group while resuming the drive for the 45-plus category.
As per Meenu Sasan, “We are managing with whatever limited resources we have. We have been vaccinating people without a break. Even people from adjoining states are coming to Panchkula to get a shot. But we cannot do much, unless we get a fresh stock.”
Till date, 2, 08, 807 persons have been vaccinated by the Panchkula health department, out of which 37, 674 are in the age group of 18-45 years.
