35% health workers took Covid vaccine second dose: Health Secretary

CHENNAI: Only over 35 per cent of healthcare workers received a second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine in Tamil Nadu on Saturday, said Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan on Monday. The second dose, for those who were administered the first dose, had begun on the day in the State.

On January 16, when the vaccination drive was launched, a total of 3,126 healthcare and frontline workers, working in Tamil Nadu hospitals, took the vaccine. But when the second dose began on Saturday, only 1,154 people took the vaccine. 

The Health Secretary was one of the recipients. He received Covaxin at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital. Speaking to press he said, the body will develop antibodies after 14 days of the second dose. “Those who received the first dose should listen to the advice of medical experts and the ICMR, and get vaccinated on the 28th day of the first dose. Merely taking the first dose will not be effective,” he said.

He added that a few districts had poor vaccination coverage, including Chennai and Chengalpattu. The respective district collectors and Chennai Corporation Commissioner were instructed to frame a micro-planning on increasing the coverage. Radhakrishnan added, in Vellore and Tiruvarur only 25 per cent of vaccine coverage was achieved. In Tiruvallur, it is 21 per cent and in Tirunelveli, it is 27 per cent. Till date, over 2.47 lakh people have been vaccinated in the State, of which 2.10 lakh were healthcare workers.

Vaccine for poll officials
The vaccination will be open for poll officials and workers as the elections are fast approaching. Their registration will begin from this week, said Radhakrishnan. He added that the State has also requested the Union Health Ministry to parallely open the vaccine for people with comorbidities below the age of 50, and for those who are above 50 years, to avoid wastage of the vaccine.

Regarding the State’s vaccine wastage, the secretary said that it was within the permissible limit. Stating that dengue cases were being reported in State, Radhakrishnan also requested people not to leave water drums, overhead tanks open, and asked them close it properly to avoid breeding of dengue mosquitoes.

Tamil Nadu vaccinated 21,645 people against Covid-19 on Monday. According to the Health Department data, among 21,645 people, as many as 15,717 were healthcare workers; 3,309 frontline workers and 2,619 were police personnel. So far, as many as 2.69 lakh people have been vaccinated across the State.