Odisha to vaccinate 18-44 age group 1st in 5 cities with high Covid TPR

Odisha till Saturday administered 6,148,532 doses of Covid vaccine including 51 lakh doses to those older than 45 years and over 10 lakh to healthcare and frontline workers.

Published on: May 9, 2021, 08:13:11 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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The vaccination for 18-45 years age group in Odisha will first begin in five urban centres of Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Rourkela, Sambalpur and Berhampur that have reported high Covid-19 test positivity rate (TPR). The additional chief secretary of health, PK Mohapatra, briefed district collectors, municipal commissioners and chief district medical officers among others in this regard underlining that prioritisation was being done due to low supply of vaccines. One lakh doses of Covishield was received by the state on Saturday.

Odisha cities of Cuttack, Bhubaneswar and Sambalpur have TPR of around 25%, while Rourkela has a TPR of around 50%. (ANI)

Cuttack, Bhubaneswar and Sambalpur have TPR of around 25%; Rourkela in Sundargarh has over 50%, while Berhampur has over 15% TPR. Currently, the 18-44 age group is being vaccinated only in Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation area, where 42,660 have received Covaxin shots since May 1. When the vaccine supply improves, this group will be vaccinated in other districts of the state too, Mohapatra said.

Till Saturday, Odisha has administered 6,148,532 doses of Covid vaccine including 51 lakh doses to those older than 45 years and over 10 lakh to healthcare and frontline workers. Residents in the 18-44 years age group are being vaccinated at government centres between 8 AM to 1 PM at Bhubaneswar while those above 45 years have been slotted between 3 PM and 6 PM.

Odisha has decided to vaccinate over 1.93 crore people in the age group of 18-44 years free of cost with a proposed expenditure of over ₹2,000 crores. Private hospitals can take ₹100 per dose as service charge but it will be completely free at govt vaccination centres.

To speed up the vaccination drive and decongest existing inoculation centres, the state government on Friday started ‘Drive in Vaccination’ in Bhubaneswar where 400 people in the age group of 45+ years were jabbed at the parking area of a mall. The government also plans to start vaccination in stadiums to ensure social distancing, maintaining which is currently a challenge at the existing vaccination centres.

On Friday, Odisha reported 12,238 new Covid cases, its highest single-day surge ever amid a high TPR of over 24.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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