COVID-19 Vaccine Tracker News: 5,615 beneficiaries receive coronavirus vaccine in India on January 26

A total of 20,29,424 beneficiaries have so far been vaccinated for COVID-19 through 36,572 sessions held till the evening of January 26, the eleventh day of the immunisation drive, according to a provisional report of the Union Health Ministry.

On January 26, 5,615 beneficiaries were vaccinated in five states -- Andhra Pradesh (9), Karnataka (429), Rajasthan (216), Tamil Nadu (4926), and Telangana (35) -- till 7.00 pm through 194 vaccination sessions, the ministry said.

In view of Republic Day, a limited number of sessions in a limited number of states were conducted on January 26, said the ministry.

According to the Health Ministry data, the highest number of vaccinations in the country till now have been carried out in Karnataka at 2,31,601 followed by Odisha at 1,77,090, Rajasthan at 1,61,332, and Maharashtra at 1,36,901.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the vaccination drive with healthcare workers at the frontline of India's COVID-19 battle getting their first jabs on January 16.

India’s drug regulator has approved two vaccines - Covaxin developed by Bharat Biotech and Covishield from the Oxford/AstraZeneca stable being manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII) - for emergency use in the country.

According to the government, the shots will be offered first to an estimated one crore healthcare workers and around two crore frontline workers, and then to persons above 50 years of age, followed by persons younger than 50 years of age with associated comorbidities.

Here are all developments related to the COVID-19 vaccine in India:

> A 27-year-old healthcare worker died in Odisha on January 26, three days after taking the COVID-19 vaccine, while the state health department said his death is not related to vaccination. The man who was inoculated on January 23 died in Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR) at Burla in Sambalpur district, an official statement said.

> Sri Lanka has expressed appreciation and gratitude to India for sending 5,00,000 doses of coronavirus vaccine to the island country. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa told the Cabinet that the Indian High Commissioner in Colombo informed that India would be sending 5,00,000 vaccines to Sri Lanka and they will arrive there on January 28.

> Over 7,400 healthcare workers received COVID-19 vaccine shots in Delhi on Monday as the inoculation drive picked up pace in the city, recording 91 percent turnout for the day, officials said.

> South African president Cyril Ramaphosa accused rich countries of hoarding coronavirus vaccines. The rich countries of the world went out and acquired large doses of vaccines from developers and manufacturers, and some countries have even gone beyond and acquired four times what their population needs, he said.

> Moderna Inc said it believes its COVID-19 vaccine protects against new variants found in Britain and South Africa, although it will test a new booster shot aimed at the South African variant after concluding the antibody response could be diminished. The company said in a news release it found no reduction in the antibody response against the variant found in Britain. Against the South African variant, it found a reduced response but still believed its two-dose regimen would provide protection.

(With inputs from PTI)