BENGALURU: With lockdown and night curfew not being viable options given the state’s economy, the Karnataka government has decided to press for vaccinations to combat the spread of Covid-19. In a meeting chaired by Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa to review the pandemic situation, the Technical Advisory Committee suggested enhancing vaccination to war-footing.Insisting that while the positivity rate was surging, mortality rates were still low, Yediyurappa gave himself and the State one week to affect the changes discuused.
“Health workers have responded well to the vaccination drive, but only about 50% frontline workers have taken the vaccine so far,” Yediyurappa, said.The TAC has asked for inoculation to be carried out more effectively in about seven districts that are seeing a sudden surge. Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural, Bidar, Kalaburagi, Udupi, Tumakuru and Dakshina Kannada are seeing a rise in positivity rate over the last two weeks.
“The committee has suggested starting vaccination drives at big apartment complexes in seven districts. We will use the electoral rolls to identify senior citizens and administer vaccines to them. Gram panchayats will be asked to trace senior citizens in their jurisdictions and inoculate them,” Yediyurappa added.
Speaking to The New Indian Express on Sunday, Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar had said that there are an estimated 50 lakh people above the age of 60 and about 14 lakh people above the age of 45 years who have comorbidities.
District officials will be activated, the Chief Minister said, to encourage at least 100 people to take vaccines every day in each of the 3,500 inoculation centres across the State. “Currently, on an average, only about 1.5 lakh people are getting the vaccine daily. We intend to increase that to 3 lakh per day. Even if 100 people get inoculated in each of the centres, we can achieve 3.5 lakh vaccinations in a day,” Yediyurappa pointed out.