Phase II of the vaccination drive is expected to cover 30 crore people.
Over a million people had registered on the government's CoWin portal by 1 pm today to get vaccinated against the coronavirus in the second phase of the country's inoculation drive. While the first phase of the vaccination campaign targeted healthcare and other frontline workers, the second phase that began today aims to inoculate those above 60 years of age and those above 45 with comorbidities. Today's launch saw top political leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself, getting their doses. India still reportedly has the second-highest number of cases after the US at 1.1 crore. In the past 24 hours alone, it reported 16,752 new infections as cases have spiked over the recent days in states like Maharashtra, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Punjab.
Here are the top-10 things you need to know as Phase II gathers steam:
Registration and booking for appointment for Covid-19 vaccination is to be done through www.cowin.gov.in and the Aarogya Setu app. There will be walk-in vaccinations in some places.
A User Guide for the Citizen Registration and Appointment for Vaccination and a list of all these private hospitals has been uploaded on the website of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and National Health Authority. These can be accessed online on the health ministry website.
More than 10,000 private hospitals empanelled under Ayushman Bharat PMJAY, more than 600 hospitals under the CGHS and other private hospitals empanelled under state schemes can function as vaccination centres.
The government hopes to vaccinate 30 crore people by August in this second phase. India began its vaccination drive on January 16 intending to inoculate three crore frontline workers but has struggled with hesitancy, giving out some 1.43 crore shots so far.
Phase II is happening at a time when India's over Covid-19 numbers have touched 1,11,12,241, including 1,57,157 deaths. Of the total reported till now, 1,68,627 cases remain active. Maharashtra, along with the four southern states of Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu remain the worst-affected in the country.
Multiple districts in Maharashtra, like Pune and Hingoli, have been put under a curfew till mid-March today following a spike in the number of Covid-19 positive cases there.
Apart from the Prime Minister, the top leaders who got vaccinated today include Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
Among the top leaders who have refused to get it done are the Congress's Mallikarjun Kharge and the BJP's minister in Haryana Anil Vij - the latter has said his anti-body count is already high, possibly due to a trial dose he had been administered earlier.
In Delhi, where it began at 12 noon, the drive spans 192 health facilities, including 136 private hospitals. The vaccines will be administered free of cost at government hospitals and health centres, while up to Rs 250 per dose will be charged at private health facilities. There are around 43 lakh people in the specified priority category of 60 years or above and those within 45-59 years with comorbidities in Delhi.
Apart from Bharat Biotech's Covaxin, Pune-based Serum Institute's Covishield, developed in partnership with Oxford University and pharma giant AstraZeneca, is also being used in the drive. More vaccines are likely to be approved for use in the coming months, including Russia's Sputnik-V and Cadila Healthcare's ZyCov-D.
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