Karnataka: Free COVID-19 vaccination for citizens in 18-44 age group at govt centres

Free COVID-19 vaccine doses for citizens between 18 and 44 years of age will be administered at the state government’s vaccination centres, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said.

Moneycontrol News

April 26, 2021 / 03:40 PM IST

Karntaka CM BS Yediyurappa (File image)

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on April 26 announced that his government will provide COVID-19 vaccines free of cost to citizens between 18 and 44 years of age.

Free vaccine doses will be administered at the state government’s vaccination centres, Yediyurappa said in a tweet.

The Centre’s vaccination drive for citizens above 45 years of age will continue, the chief minister further said. “I urge all eligible to register themselves from April 28,” he added.

Earlier in the day, the Karnataka government also announced that a 'COVID curfew' will be implemented across the state for a 14-day period. The curfew will come into force at 9 pm on April 27. All essential shops will be allowed to function from 6 am to 10 am.

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

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.

Show