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In Photos: India begins its Covid-19 vaccination drive
At hospitals and vaccination centers across major Indian cities -- from Mumbai to New Delhi -- tens of thousands of key frontline workers began queuing, some to receive the first vaccines while others to administer them.
India launched one of the world’s largest coronavirus vaccination drives on Saturday, setting in motion a complex deployment plan aimed at stemming the wide spread of infections across a nation of more than 1.3 billion people.
At hospitals and vaccination centers across major Indian cities -- from Mumbai to New Delhi -- tens of thousands of key frontline workers began queuing, some to receive the first vaccines while others to administer them. Prime Minister Narendra Modi kicked off the program with a speech addressing more than 3,000 centers across India where the first shots were to be given.
“These vaccines will help India win the battle against the virus,” Modi said, adding that Indians should get the shots and not pay heed to any anti-vaccine propaganda.
In a hospital in Mumbai, health workers chanted the name of the Hindu god Ganesha, believed to bless new beginnings, as they moved vials from cold storage to the vaccination sites. Many health workers and hospital staff shortlisted to be inoculated on the first day of the campaign said they were relieved to be on the list.
The inoculation campaign across the world’s second-most populous country will showcase whether Covid-19 can be swiftly tamed in nations with disjointed health and transportation networks. Officially, more than 10.5 million people in India have been infected with the disease that has also killed at least 150,000 in the country.
India has granted emergency licenses to the two-dose vaccines manufactured by Bharat Biotech International Ltd. and the Serum Institute of India Ltd. The latter partnered with AstraZeneca Plc to make at least one billion doses of their shot. New Delhi already made its first purchase of 11 million Astra shots, as well as 5.5 million vials of Covaxin, the indigenous inoculation produced by Bharat Biotech.
Plans drawn up by India’s health ministry outline steps to vaccinate 300 million people in the first stage through August.
In an initial round, 30 million health care and front line workers -- such as the police and defense forces -- will receive injections. The second phase is targeted at about 270 million people above the age of 50 and those at particular risk to Covid. The process will draw on existing networks used to vaccinate tens of millions of babies each year against diseases such as polio.
