Almost 25 per cent of India fully vaccinated against Covid-19

INTERNATIONAL DESK: More than eight months after it rolled out the Covid-19 vaccination drive, India on Tuesday completed administering both doses of the vaccine to almost 25% of the estimated adult population.

According to provisional data, more than 53 lakh vaccine doses were administered on Tuesday, taking the cumulative number to 87.59 crore. With Tuesday’s vaccinations, 68% of the estimated adult population has received their first dose and 24.61% are fully vaccinated.

Almost a quarter of the adult population being fully vaccinated has significant public health implications. Data shows that vaccine effectiveness in preventing death enhances after the second dose, offering near-total protection (97.5%) against severity and death.

“It is clear that among the tools we are using in our fight against the pandemic, it is the vaccine tool, which is the most significant shield that is protecting us from death. It is also clear that if you give two doses there is near total protection against serious disease and death. This will change the scenario very dramatically,” Dr V K Paul, head of India’s Covid-19 task force, had earlier said.

According to latest official data, four large states – Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat – have conducted more than 6 crore cumulative vaccinations. Three of these large states have a second dose coverage higher than national average: Gujarat (40%), Madhya Pradesh (27%) and Maharashtra (26%). Uttar Pradesh, which has conducted the maximum cumulative vaccinations, has, however, administered both doses to just 13.34% of the adult population.

West Bengal, Rajasthan, Karnataka and Bihar have carried out more than 5 crore cumulative vaccinations. While Karnataka (35%) and Rajasthan (30%) have second dose coverage above national average, West Bengal (23%) has second dose coverage nearing the national average. Bihar (14%) has a second dose average significantly lower than the national average.

The four states which have crossed 3 crore cumulative vaccinations have also crossed 20 per cent second dose coverage: Kerala (37.44%), Odisha (26%), Andhra Pradesh (24%) and Tamil Nadu (20%).

Two out of the three states that have conducted more than 2 crore cumulative vaccinations have second dose coverage more than the national average: Telangana and Haryana (31% each), and Assam (24%).

Four states and two union territories have conducted cumulative vaccination of more than 1 crore doses. Four of them – Uttarakhand (40%), J&K (39%), Delhi (35%), Chhattisgarh (27% ) – now have second dose vaccination coverage above the national average. The remaining two – Punjab (22.4%) and Jharkhand (15.43%) – have second dose vaccination coverage below the national average. (The Indian Express)