Covid vaccine hesitancy can prove dear, take second dose: Sudhakar urges public

HUBBALLI: Hesitancy to take the vaccine and complacency among people over reduced severity of the Covid-19 infection could prove costly if the third wave of the pandemic hits, Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar said on Friday.

Sudhakar said though he was not too sure of the arrival of the third wave, those who have kept away from the vaccine could fall prey to the virus. Those who have taken the first shot should mandatorily take the second one to become completely immune, he added.

He said that around 52 lakh people are due for the second dose, but have not got vaccinated. Health department staff have reached out to them to take their second jab at the earliest. Though the government is making all efforts to contain the infection through a large-scale immunisation drive, the virus cannot be defeated unless people cooperate, he added.

While 75% of eligible adults of the nation have received the first dose, the rate in Karnataka is 83 per cent. Similarly, 38% of the state’s eligible population is fully vaccinated, against 28% in the entire nation. The emphasis now is to bring the remaining 62%  under the vaccine umbrella,he said.

Reacting to criticism by the Congress on celebrations of one billion doses of vaccine, he said it is a historic achievement that happened in just nine months. Earlier, vaccines would come to India 10-25 years after their discovery, but now the country managed to invent its own vaccine.   He also accused the Opposition of spreading canards on the vaccine, and calling it “Modi’s vaccine” which could influence innocent people into avoiding the jab.