Lucknow, Apr 20 (UNI) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday lauded the Narendra Modi-led Central Government for bringing down the age bar for vaccine to 18 years amid a massive spike in the coronavirus infections in the state, saying it will help in reducing transmission level by youth.
'The new wave is a result of carelessness as people stopped using masks and did not maintain social distancing. I would like to express my gratitude to PM Modi and the central government for making two indigenous Covid vaccines available to all countrymen above 18 in time and also to the scientists who worked tirelessly to develop the same,' said the CM while holding a high-level Covid review meeting with senior officials on Tuesday.
Over the alarming rise of coronavirus infections across the state, Mr Adityanath termed the Centre's decision of lowering the age bar for Covid vaccine to 18 years as a 'great relief' as it will provide a safety shield to every adult, thus giving a major boost in the war against the pandemic.
'In the second wave of this pandemic, it is the youth who seem to be more vulnerable as the numbers indicate. It was essential to provide them protection as people under 45 years of age have to stay outdoors in order to take care of their parents or children,' said the CM, adding that 'the youth must not take the pandemic lightly and strictly follow the Covid-19 protocol to avoid getting infected'.
As the government's decision comes into effect, about 12 crore people between 18 and 45 years of age will get the benefit of vaccines in the country. People belonging to the 18-45 years age category will be vaccinated by the state government in private hospitals as well, which in turn will accelerate the vaccination drive and will help in bringing down the transmission levels by the youth.
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