Six more people died of cornavirus, while more than 1,100 got infected in a span of 24 hours in south coastal Andhra pradesh, even as people queued up at public health centres for vaccine on Thursday.
The vaccination drive gathered momentum in the region as the Nellore and Prakasam district authorities have got the vaccine stock replenished.
People worried over the rapid spread of the virus thronged the PHCs both in urban and rural areas to take the jab on Thursday as those waiting for the second dose were given a priority.
The double mutant variant of the virus continued to take toll as Nellore and Prakasam districts reported three deaths each in the last 24 hours ending on Thursday morning, taking the fatalities to 560 and 602 respectively, said a health bulletin.
The active cases touched the 9,300 mark in the two districts as 816 persons in Nellore district and another 345 persons got infected in Prakasam. Meanwhile, 472 patients including 318 in Nellore recovered.
Ongole alone accounted for 1278 active cases, said Prakasam Collector P. Bhaskar, while reviewing the health situation. He underscored the need for people staying indoors and step out only in case of medical emergencies.
Curbs on people’s movement
“All should abide by the restrictions on movement of people that would be imposed in a day or two for at least a week after consultations with people from different walks of life. However, there is no need to panic as the mortality rate reamins at 0.93%,” said the Collector.
As many as 62,711 of the 67,209 infected persons have reported a smart recovery so far, he added.
More than 42,000 people who had been administered the first dose of the vaccine were given the second dose in the two districts by late on Thursday. As many as 22,380 persons were inoculated in Nellore district by 7 p.m., health officials said.
In Prakasam, more than 20,000 people took the jab by the evening, said District Medical and Health Officer P. Ratnavalli.
‘No shortage of oxygen’
“We have 13 kilolitre of oxygen which can take care of patients accommodated on 576 beds with oxygen facilities. As of now, there is no shortage of oxygen. Higher authorities have promised replenishment of the stock,” she said.