COVID-19 vaccination drive: Celebrations were seen in different parts of the country as the massive COVID-19 vaccination drive was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday. Visuals of women folk-dancers at the vaccination launch venue in Chhattisgarh and Diwali-like fireworks came in from Mumbai. In Pune, nurses at a hospital drew rangolis to welcome people who were there to get the shot. Most COVID-19 vaccination launch venues at hospitals and health centres were decorated with flowers and balloons.
In Chhattisgarh, a 51-year-old woman sanitation worker at a government hospital was the first person in the state to get the coronavirus vaccine shot on Saturday. Vaccination began in 97 centres across the state, after PM Modi formally inaugurated the drive from Delhi.
In Odisha, 161 venues have been readied for the COVID-19 vaccination drive and as many as 16,100 health care workers will get the shots, officials. The first phase of the vaccination drive in Odisha will go on for 12 days, according to a news report in Press Trust of India.
In Bihar, COVID-19 vaccination kicked off with five staff members of a super specialty government hospital in Patna in presence of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. According to the state government, 30,000 vaccine doses will be administered across the state every day in the current phase and a total of 300 centres have been set up for the purpose.
In West Bengal, the COVID-19 vaccination drive began with a doctor of a private hospital receiving the first shot. State labour minister Nirmal Maji today received his COVID-19 vaccine at the Kolkata Medical College and Hospital, officials said.
"Today is a big day for us. It seems we are slowly coming out of the pandemic...," state minister Firhad Hakim said. Around 90,000 frontline health workers at government and private hospitals have been enrolled for the first phase of coronavirus vaccination in West Bengal.
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