E-Paper
Free vaccination for all above 18
Jharkhand residents above 18 years of age will be administered Covid-19 vaccine free of cost
Jharkhand residents above 18 years of age will be administered Covid-19 vaccine free of cost. Chief minister Hemant Soren announced the same through his official Twitter handle late on Thursday night.
According to officials in the state health department, the decision was made to waive off financial burden of people during the pandemic. Soren said, “The government is working day and night to help people during this period of drastic transition. I believe we can beat coronavirus with cooperation from all.”
Earlier, the state government urged the central government to reduce the previous age limit of 45 for vaccine beneficiaries in light of the rapidly spreading infection among younger people.
The Union government recently on Monday announced that all persons above 18 years of age will be eligible for Covid-19 shots from May 1. The registration for the same will begin from April 28.
The Covid-19 vaccination drive started in Jharkhand from January 16. As per a bulletin of the state health department, more than 25.15 lakh people were administered the first dose of the vaccine till Thursday, while over 3.93 lakh people received their second dose.
However, a decline in footfall of first dose seekers was witnessed on Thursday, that some health experts blamed on the confusion arising due to the ongoing week-long lockdown in the state that began April 22. However, no major change was witnessed in the case of second dose beneficiaries.
Even though state nodal officer (vaccination) Dr Ajit Prasad expressed his inability to comment on the matter, as he was also suffering from Covid-19 infection, officials at a vaccination office said the drop in footfall of first dose seekers was witnessed, while it partially increased in case of second dose.
“There are many reasons behind the slight fall in case of first dose. There may be confusion over lockdown, while some may be scared of visiting vaccination centres due to the sudden case surge. However, we are working to address the issue and we hope it will increase soon,” a senior official said, requesting anonymity.
He said vaccination awareness vehicles were being flagged by many districts to educate people about its importance.
Jharkhand on Thursday recorded its highest ever single-day spike with 7,595 new cases, while as many as 106 people died due to the disease. The state registered 64,536 cases in between April 1 April 22, while 601 people died during the period due to the virus.
Vaccination progress
Date First Dose Second dose
April 22 12,439 8,783
April 21 16,393 8,263
April 20 22,381 12,656
April 19 18,758 7,622
April 18 28,067 7,788
