Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Amid the fear of the spread of the highly transmissible variant of Covid-19, Omicron, Indian Medical Association-Indore batted for the vaccination of kids at the earliest.
Demanding a quick decision, the doctors said that it is anticipated that children would be hit more in the third wave of Covid-19 and therefore delay in approval for vaccination for kids is baffling.
President of IMA-Indore Dr Sumit Shukla said, “It is high time that the government allows vaccinating children. As all the adult population has been vaccinated, kids are the only section left out from the vaccination cover and are now prone to the disease.”
He added that the new variant of the virus is highly transmissible and delay in vaccination may prove dangerous and securing the children should be the first priority.
Not only the experts but parents too appealed to the government to start vaccinating kids at the earliest as they are afraid of sending the kids to school without vaccination.
The Subject Expert Committee on Covid-19 had recommended Drugs and Comptroller General of India (DCGI) to approve emergency use of Covaxin for children between 2 and 17 years and the government is reviewing and analysing the approval for the committee.
Meanwhile, health department officials said that over 12-14 lakh children will fall under the age group for the vaccination and they could complete the first dose of vaccination within four months of approval.
Kids vaccination must be started with immediate effect
“All adult population is vaccinated and the only ones left exposed are the kids. Expert committee has already recommended the government to approve emergency use of Covaxin for children and the government must not delay any more for the same.” -Dr Sumit Shukla President, Indian Medical Association-Indore
It is important to vaccinate kids at the earliest
“Studies have shown that Omicron is highly transmissible and the government is also expecting another wave of Covid with a peak in January. It is important to vaccinate kids before any wave hits the country while booster doses must also be given to the healthcare workers.” -Dr Sanjay Londhe, IMA-Zonal Chairman
Must start vaccinating children with same enthusiasm
“Our country has been leading the world in vaccination of adults and proved our mettle. As most of the adult population is vaccinated, the government should start vaccinating kids to ensure complete security of the population.” -Dr Amit Bhatt, Deputy Director (Health Services), Choithram Hospital
“Our country had faced a tough time in coming out from the second wave of Covid-19. Government should not let any area unguarded from the deadly virus and must start vaccinating kids to return to normalcy swiftly.” -Dr Anil Dongre, Medical Officer, Indore.