Centre asks states/UTs to increase coverage of second dose of COVID-19 vaccine

The states/UTs were also urged to improve the momentum of vaccination and accelerate its coverage as the country moves forward to vaccinate all the eligible population by end of the year under the nationwide coronavirus vaccination drive.

PTI

October 24, 2021 / 08:28 IST

Almost 15 million Americans have received a dose of the J&J vaccine, and nearly 70 million are fully vaccinated with Moderna. (Image: AFP)

The Centre on Saturday urged states/UTs to focus on those beneficiaries waiting for their second dose of COVID-19 vaccine after their interval period has been over.

The states/UTs were also urged to improve the momentum of vaccination and accelerate its coverage as the country moves forward to vaccinate all the eligible population by end of the year under the nationwide coronavirus vaccination drive.

"So far, 71.24 crore first doses, covering 76 per cent of the eligible population, and 30.06 crore second doses, covering 32 per cent of the eligible population, have been administered the Covid vaccines," the health ministry said in a statement.

It said states have been requested to access line list of due beneficiaries from Co-WIN portal.

Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said the detailed line-lists of due beneficiaries can be utilised for preparing district-wise second dose administration plan involving district magistrates for execution in a time-bound manner.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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