A 120-year-old woman has emerged as the ‘poster girl’ of vaccination in Jammu and Kashmir, where vaccine hesitancy resulted in slow progress for the COVID-19 vaccination drive of March and April this year.
An official said Dholi Devi, 120, a resident of village Ghar Katiyas of Sub Division Drudu, Tehsil Latti in Udhampur, was administered her first dose at a vaccination camp. “Ms. Devi has set an example for younger people,” the official said.
A family member, who accompanied Ms. Devi, told the media that they felt more confident to come forward for vaccination.
“Vaccine is the best shield against the COVID infection. We are very happy to get our eldest member of family vaccinated against the COVID-19 infection,” he added.
Deputy Commissioner, Udhampur, Indu Kanwal Chib has appealed to the public to cooperate with the district administration.
“The Health Department has been directed to expedite the vaccination campaign in a mission mode and achieve the targets in a fixed timeline,” she added.
Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner of Jammu Anshul Garg on Friday said overall positivity rate, which was above 10% in the first week of May, has dropped to below 7% in the past few days.
“Equivalent emphasis has been given on testing in urban as well as rural areas. Around 7,000-8,000 tests are being conducted on a daily basis, out of which 50% have been conducted in rural areas,” he said.
Mr. Garg said the majority of 45-plus age group persons have been vaccinated. “Over 3.55 lakh beneficiaries of this age group have been given the first dose of vaccine, and left out beneficiaries will be covered soon to achieve the 100% target,” he added.
According to official figures, 43 people died and 3,848 new positive cases were seen in the past 24 hours.
“While 1,442 cases were from the Jammu division, 2,406 were reported from the Kashmir division. Of 43 deaths, 27 were from the Jammu division and 16 were from the Kashmir division,” officials said.