50% HCWs, 7% FLWs vaccinated in 21 days, Pune lags behind most districts in the state

Pune: In 21 days, since the Covid-19 vaccination drive began across the country, Pune has covered about 50% of its registered health care workers (HCW) and 7% of the frontline workers (FLW)

Pune: In 21 days, since the Covid-19 vaccination drive began across the country, Pune has covered about 50% of its registered health care workers (HCW) and 7% of the frontline workers (FLW). The vaccination drive for frontline workers, including police personnel and civic staff, began on February 8.

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The vaccination drive began across the country from January 16. In terms of cumulative numbers, the district is at the third spot in the state as 65,000 have been vaccinated of the registered 2.04 lakh beneficiaries, including HCWs and FLWs. The figure takes the average percentage to 32.31% for the district.

The Covid vaccination drive in the city primarily included administering Covishield and Covaxin in the district hospital alone. While almost half the HCWs have received their first dose in 21 days, only 7% of FLWs got their second dose in seven days.

As per the information provided by the state health department, Pune stands at third spot in terms of cumulative beneficiaries being covered. It stands at a lower rank when it comes to the percentage coverage among beneficiaries. Mumbai tops in the state with over 1.14 lakh beneficiaries vaccinated, Thane comes second with 68,000 and Pune has a little over 65,000 inoculated. However, in terms of percentage, Pune stands at a much lower position with bigger cities like Mumbai and Thane overtaking the numbers and also smaller districts like Ahmednagar, Solapur and Satara overtaking the district’s overall vaccination performance.

District collector Rajesh Deshmukh said, “PMC’s cumulative numbers are the highest as 46% beneficiaries have been covered. Pune rural and PCMC which have fewer registered beneficiaries comparatively have covered more than the state average. Pune district’s vaccination average is about 50% which is lower than the state average of 53%. We have asked the local authorities, including both the civic bodies and all the talukas, to increase vaccination through more information, education and communication campaigns.”