Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday reviewed the progress of COVID-19 vaccination drive which was kickstarted in India on January 16. During the meeting, PM directed officers to work with the states to ensure that the pace of testing does not go down as testing remains a very important weapon to track and contain rising infections in any region.
The prime minister also expressed satisfaction at the rising speed of vaccinations in this week and stressed that it is important to carry this momentum forward. PM also said that efforts should be made to help all countries, who have expressed interest, with India’s rich tech expertise in the form of Cowin platform.
During the meeting, the PM was briefed about the age wise vaccination coverage. He was also briefed about the vaccine coverage among healthcare workers, frontline workers and general population in various states.
Officials apprised the PM about the vaccine supply in the upcoming months and efforts being made to increase production.
The officials also informed that 3.77 crore doses have been administered in the last 6 days which is more than the entire population of countries like Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Canada. It was also discussed that 128 districts in the country have vaccinated more than 50% of the 45+ population and 16 districts have vaccinated more than 90% of the 45+ population.
Officers briefed the PM that they are in touch with state governments to explore and implement innovative methods to reach people for vaccination. They also told the PM about the rising interest in Cowin platform globally.
Meanwhile, India's Covid vaccination coverage has crossed the landmark of 31 crore as 61.19 lakh vaccine doses were administered in the last 24 hours.
In a significant achievement, India's cumulative vaccination coverage has exceeded 31 crores on Friday. A total of 31,50,45,926 vaccine doses have been administered through 42,00,839 sessions, as per the provisional report till 7 a.m. on Saturday. A total of 61,19,169 vaccine doses were administered in the last 24 hours.
The new phase of universalisation of Covid vaccination commenced from June 21, 2021. The Union Government is committed to accelerating the pace and expanding the scope of vaccination throughout the country.
India has reported 48,698 new cases in the last 24 hours.
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