COVID-19 Vaccine Tracker: 14.5 lakh doses administered in India on May 21

A man wearing a face shield receives a dose of Covishield, a COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute of India, at a vaccination centre in Mumbai. (Image: Reuters)

More than 14.58 lakh COVID-19 vaccine doses were administered in India on May 21, the Union Health Ministry's latest provisional report suggested. With that, the cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country reached 19.33 crore.

On the 126th day of the vaccination drive (May 21), 12.71 lakh beneficiaries received their first shot and 1.87 lakh people were given their second dose.

The government has revised the gap between the two doses for the Oxford-AstraZeneca's Covishield, being manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, to 12-16 weeks. However, the interval for the second dose of Bharat Biotech's Covaxin remains unchanged.

Follow our LIVE blog for the latest updates of the novel coronavirus pandemic

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the nationwide vaccination drive on January 16, with healthcare workers at the frontline of India's COVID-19 battle getting their first jabs. The country began the second phase of the vaccination drive from March 1 in which everyone above 60 years of age and those over 45 years with comorbidities could start getting the vaccine.

From April 1, vaccination was opened for everyone above the age of 45 with or without comorbidities.

India rolled out the third phase of its COVID-19 vaccination drive for those in the 18-44 age group on May 1. The central government has liberalised the vaccination drive to allow states, private hospitals and industrial establishments to procure the doses directly from manufacturers.

Registration on CoWIN platform for the third phase began on April 28 and is mandatory for the 18-44 age group.

Here are key developments related to the COVID-19 vaccination process:

> Amid an acute shortage of COVID-19 vaccines in the country, executive director of Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII) Suresh Jadhav on May 21 alleged that the government began inoculating people from multiple age groups without taking into account the available stock of vaccines and the WHO guidelines. Speaking at an e-summit organised by Heal Health, a health advocacy and awareness platform, Jadhav said the country should have followed the WHO guidelines and prioritised vaccination accordingly.

> The Delhi government will have to temporarily stop the inoculation drive for the 18-44 age group from May 24, as it has almost run out of vaccines for this category, AAP MLA Atishi said.

> In an effort to facilitate more bidders to take part in the global tender for COVID-19 vaccine procurement by the Odisha government, the state Cabinet amended certain terms and condition in the tender documents, an official said. The amended approval in this regard was made at the Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

> The total count of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in Delhi crossed the 50 lakh-mark, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said.

> Delay in giving second dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine by 12 weeks increases antibody response in older people by three-and-a-half times compared to those who receive it at a three-week interval, according to a study conducted in the UK. The finding comes days after the UK government reduced the gap between the two doses of COVID-19 vaccines to eight weeks, while India extended the interval between two doses of the Covishield preventive to 12-16 weeks, up from the previous maximum of eight weeks.

> The Karnataka government will resume the COVID-19 vaccination drive for people in the 18-44 years age group from May 22. The frontline workers will be the first to receive the doses followed by other eligible groups, the state government said in an order.

Here's the vaccination count for some states:

Click here for Moneycontrol’s full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic