Around 24 per cent of Chennai's eligible population is fully vaccinated
The mega vaccination drive in Chennai on Thursday clocked a record 1.25 lakh doses after the numbers showed a sharp decline this month. The city corporation had set up 400 camps, including two hundred mobile units, to achieve the target.
This is nearly ten times the number of people vaccinated at 45 vaccination centres in the city in a day.
Chennai's 58 lakh eligible population accounts for nearly 10 per cent of the 6 crore population of the state. Amid reports of vaccine hesitancy, the drive is seen as an attempt to put vaccination on the fast track.
Tamil Nadu had administered just 4.57 lakh doses between January and February, but it rose by 5 times in March crossing 25 lakh doses. It was nearly seven times in May at 30 lakh doses. In June it was twelve times high with 57 lakh doses. It peaked 15 times in July with 67.5 lakh doses, but in August it slowed down and the state clocked the same 67.5 lakh doses.
"This campaign comes at the right time to give major fillip to the drive and take it to the next level and scale up our regular operations as well," Vishu Mahajan, Regional Deputy Commissioner, Greater Chennai Corporation, told NDTV.
Somasundari, 76, said she overcame fear and vaccine hesitancy to get her first dose yesterday.
"So many people feared that it we take the injection we would die the next day; that was the time actor Vivek died," she said.
When asked if she is confident now, Somasundari said," Yes, very much confident."
Around 24 per cent of Chennai's eligible population is fully vaccinated against the state's 9 per cent.
The mega drive, the city hopes, would vaccinate a larger population before the potential third wave.