COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in India surpass 150-crore mark

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya termed it an "historic achievement" made possible because of the relentless hard work of healthcare workers under the able leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Moneycontrol News

January 07, 2022 / 15:14 IST

COVID-19 vaccination drive begins for children in the age group of 15 to 18 years at Government Model Senior Secondary School in Manimajra, Chandigarh. (Image: ANI)

India achieved a major milestone in its vaccination programme against COVID-19 as the cumulative vaccine doses administered in the country surpassed the 150-crore mark on Friday.

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya termed it an "historic achievement" made possible because of the relentless hard work of healthcare workers under the able leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

When everyone makes efforts together then any goal can be achieved, Mandaviya said in a tweet in Hindi. The Covid vaccine doses administered in the country surpassed the 100-crore mark on October 21, leading to celebratory events in various parts of the country.

According to health ministry officials, over 91 per cent of the adult population has received at least one dose while over 66 per cent have been fully vaccinated.

Over 22 per cent of eligible adolescents have been vaccinated with the first dose since the vaccination for this age group began on January 3. The countrywide vaccination drive was rolled out on January 16 with healthcare workers (HCWs) getting inoculated in the first phase.

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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