Amid the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic, India on Sunday completed one year of its successful vaccination drive. Congratulating India on the successful vaccination drive, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya tweeted, “16th January 2021 will always be remembered! Congratulations India on crossing 157 crore Covid19 vaccinations that too in just 1 year. With PM Narendra Modi Ji’s mantra of Sabka Prayas, India has emerged as an example in the world in fight against Covid-19.”
On January 16, 2021, the inoculation of the healthcare workers started while the frontline workers got their doses from February 2, 2021. The vaccination of those above 60 years and above 45 years with specified comorbidities started on March 1, 2021. Similarly, the vaccination for all people aged more than 45 started on April 1, 2021, and finally, the vaccination for those above 18 years started on May 1, 2021.
To mark the successful completion of one year of vaccination, the Union Health Minister released a postal stamp. Mandaviya tweeted, “Releasing commemorative postal stamp on India’s achievement in developing indigenous Covid vaccine.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also took to Twitter to mark the success of one year of vaccination. He tweeted, “Today we mark #1yearofVaccinedrive. I salute each and every individual who is associated with the vaccination drive. Our vaccination programme has added great strength to the fight against Covid-19. It has led to saving lives and thus protecting livelihoods.”
Praising the efforts of the healthcare workers and nurses, he further tweeted, “At the same time, the role of our doctors, nurses and healthcare workers is exceptional. When we see glimpses of people being vaccinated in remote areas, or our healthcare workers taking the vaccines there, our hearts and minds are filled with pride.”
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that if the government and the people of a country unite to achieve a common goal, then the country can conquer every challenge. “Leadership and determination of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the continuous efforts of the people in India have proved that if the government and the people of a country unite to achieve a common goal, then the country can conquer every challenge and make the impossible possible,” Shah tweeted in Hindi.
According to sources, more than 11 crore beneficiaries have received vaccination in tribal districts and almost over 65 crore beneficiaries accounting for 70% of the adult population, are fully vaccinated. Also, more than three crore children (15-18 years) have received the first dose within ten days of the vaccination programme.
As per the Union Health Minister, more than 66 lakh vaccine doses have been administered in the last 24 hours. He has said that India’s vaccination programme has been one of the most the successful and largest programmes as compared to developed nations. More than 100 crore doses have been administered in less than nine months. India had initiated the programme of Har Ghar Dastak (Door-to-Door) vaccination drive for people who were hesitant to take vaccines. The health officials have been consistently urging people to follow Covid protocols.
Among the states, Uttar Pradesh has given a total of over 23.06 crore Covid-19 vaccination doses to date. It leads the charts as the number one state with most Covid-19 vaccination doses administered, followed by Maharashtra (14.31 crore doses), West Bengal (11.39 crore doses), Madhya Pradesh (10.74 crore doses) and Bihar (10.70 crore doses).
As per the data recorded by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India on Sunday reported 132,557 more active Covid cases. Till now, the country has reported more than 6,000 cases of Omicron.
CASES START DIPPING IN DELHI
Delhi continued to register a decline in daily Covid-19 cases with the city recording 18,286 cases in the last 24 hours. As per a bulletin issued by the health department of the Delhi government, the positivity rate for the day has declined to 27.87%. A total of 65,621 samples were tested during the last 24 hours. With this, the total Covid-19 cases in the state have gone up to 17,09,970.
During the last 24 hours, 21,846 people recovered from the infection, taking the recoveries in the national capital to 15,94,788.
28 people died due to the deadly virus during the last 24 hours. The death toll in the state due to the virus currently stands at 25,363.
There are currently 89,819 active Covid-19 cases in the national capital, out of which 68,411 are currently in home isolation.
As per Delhi government, there are currently 2,711 patients admitted in hospitals, out of which 120 are suspected to be infected with Covid-19 and 2,591 are confirmed cases of Covid-19.
As per the government, 85.51% of beds across dedicated Covid-19 hospitals in Delhi are vacant, with only 2,711 beds out of total 15,499 beds being occupied by patients.
Similarly, 89.15% of beds in Covid-19 care centres are vacant, with 502 beds out of 4,626 beds being occupied by patients. In the Covid-19 health centres, 81.65% beds are empty, with only 29 out of 158 beds being occupied by the patients.
Mumbai reported 7,895 new cases of Covid-19 out of 57,534 tests conducted during the last 24 hours. According to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) bulletin, the total number of cases of the disease in Mumbai has gone up to 9,99,862. Eleven people lost their lives due to the virus during the last 24 hours and the death toll has gone up to 16,257. The city has 60,371 active cases.