India rolled out the world’s largest vaccination drive on January 16 to vaccinate around 300 million priority groups against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
COVID-19 vaccines will be administered at 3,006 sites in all its states and union territories. Among the first to be vaccinated are 10 million health-workers who are at high risk of exposure to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) that causes COVID-19.
The excitement was palpable as the first batches of the vaccines reached all of India’s 3,006 sites by Saturday morning, where around 100 persons are scheduled to be vaccinated on the inaugural day. India has granted emergency use authorization to two made-in-India COVID-19 vaccines on January 3, 2021.
Over the next six months, the vaccination drive will cover 300 million priority groups who are at higher risk of getting infected. These include 10 million health workers, 20 million frontline workers and around 270 million persons above age 50 years and/or with co-morbidities.
COVID-19 vaccination will help save lives, stabilize health systems and drive economic recovery, but COVID-appropriate social behaviours and core public health measures– detect, test, trace, isolate and treat – will have to continue till vaccines are freely available and the pandemic is over.
