Mandaviya to hold meet to discuss low vaccination rates in these states

The Covid-19 first dose vaccine coverage is less than 70% in Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Puducherry.

Union health and family welfare minister Mansukh Mandaviya will hold a meeting on Monday to discuss the low Covid-19 first dose coverage in Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Puducherry. The Covid-19 first dose vaccine coverage is less than 70% in these states and Union Territories, people familiar with the developments told news agency PTI. He will also review the progress and planning of Covid-19 vaccination in these regions and discuss means to increase coverage.

43% of India’s population are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 while 82% of the eligible population have received the first dose of the vaccine. (HT FIle)

At least 56.7% of the eligible population in Meghalaya have received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. In Manipur, the number is currently 54.2% while 49% and 65.7% of Nagaland and Puducherry's population, respectively, have been vaccinated with the first dose, officials said quoting government data on Sunday.

The government also launched the month-long ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ campaign for the unvaccinated and for those who are overdue on their second vaccine. The campaign includes health officials going door-to-door identifying beneficiaries who are required to take the Covid-19 shots.

Officials say that more than 12 crore people are overdue for their second dose of Covid-19 vaccine following the expiry of the prescribed interval between the two vaccines.

“Mandaviya will hold a meeting to review the progress and planning of Covid-19 vaccination in Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Puducherry on Monday where the first dose coverage is less than 70%. The aim is to encourage vaccination there,” people familiar with the developments told news agency PTI. Officials say that 43% of India’s population are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 while 82% of the eligible population have received the first dose of the vaccine.

India has administered 116.50 crore vaccine doses across 12,041,157 sessions. The nation is aiming to fully inoculate the entire population within the end of this year and have launched mega-vaccination campaigns in a bid to achieve this objective.