GURUGRAM: More than 11,000 people aged above 45 years were inoculated on the first day under the fourth phase of the Covid vaccination drive. Around three lakh people are eligible for this phase and according to official data, 11,070 were vaccinated till 5 pm on Thursday.
Officials said that this month, the drive will be conducted on all days, including public holidays, to ensure maximum coverage.
The district has a target of 3.5 lakh for the fourth phase and the number includes the target for the third phase as well. On Thursday, 198 session sites were set up for the drive — 142 in government and 56 in private facilities — and no adverse event following immunisation (AEFI) cases were recorded, officials said. The process was mostly smooth and several people had booked their slots online. Walk-ins were also allowed and those who got the jabs had to produce a valid photo ID proof. Both Covishield and Covaxin were administered across the centres.
“We have already vaccinated more than two lakh people in the district since January 16 when the drive started. We have asked all hospitals to inoculate as many people as possible. No AEFI cases were reported on Thursday. In case we record such a case, we will conduct RT-PCR tests on the person,” said Dr Virender Yadav, the chief medical officer, Gurugram.
The drive began around 8.30 am and several city hospitals have said they will vaccinate people till 8 pm daily. According to officials, footfall after 5pm would be added to next day’s tally.
So far, the drive was mostly being conducted from 9 am to 5 pm. Dr Piyush Goel, senior consultant, pulmonary and critical Care, Columbia Asia Hospital, Palam Vihar, said: “The country’s caseload had dropped significantly when the vaccination process started earlier this year. We were adding under 15,000 cases daily. But now, the number of cases is going up. We are preparing ourselves to face this challenge.”
Health officials said that teams are being sent to residential areas with banners and flyers to spread awareness about Covid vaccine. Social media platforms are also being used to urge people to take the shots. Dr Swadesh Kumar, consultant and head of emergency department, Narayana Hospital, said: “Our hospital has a capacity to inoculate about 500 people per day. On Thursday, around 190 residents took the jabs till 5 pm. The process was smooth and all Covid protocols were followed.”
Ritu Aggarwal (46) who got her first dose at a private hospital in Sector 56 said she had been waiting for her turn. “I am happy that I got the vaccine. It is such a relief. I have a 17-year-old son and I am worried about him now. My husband also got the shot today (Thursday),” she said.
Rohit Gerewal (47), who took the jab along with his wife, said: “The process was smooth and it took us only five minutes to get the shots. The centre was not very crowded. After the jab, we waited in the observation room for about 30 minutes and then left.”
The city also administered the second dose of vaccine to several people who had got the shots on March 1. For the third phase, the target was 1.5 lakh and 1,12,540 people have been inoculated. On Thursday, 452 healthcare and 749 frontline workers also got vaccinated. So far, 50,507 healthcare and 31,999 frontline workers have got the jabs, according to official figures.
From April 5, private hospitals, including Max, Artemis and Fortis, will inoculate people at specific locations. While Artemis will set up camps at the Apollo Tyres office on Monday, Fortis will conduct the drive on Tuesday for Panasonic, Jindal Steel, Coforge, Honda Motorcycles and Scooters. The health department will set up camps at PepsiCo, Maruti and Aviva offices for now. The camp for PepsiCo will start from Friday. The other camps would be held from Monday. So far, 17 lakh people have been inoculated in the state against a target of 45 lakh. Gurugram that has a target of 4 lakh, has inoculated 2.1 lakh people.