BHUBANESWAR: Over 5,000 children, aged 12-14 years, got the first dose Covid vaccine in the State on the first day of the vaccination drive for teenagers on Wednesday. Health department sources said of 72,232 people administered the Covid-19 vaccines on Wednesday, 5,024 were in the 12 to 14 years age group. The new Corbevax vaccine, introduced exclusively for the teens, was administered at 54 dedicated centres in 30 districts.
An estimated 15.21 lakh children in the age group are eligible for Covid vaccine. The willing children were allowed on-site registration on the first day as the CoWIN portal was not live. Director of Family Welfare Dr Bijay Panigrahi said dedicated vaccination centres have been opened for the teenagers in selected schools. The number of centres will rise in the coming days as the target is to cover all eligible beneficiaries by the end of April, he added.
While the vaccination centres were open at 8 am, teenagers were seen making beelines at several places since morning. “We were in fear of severe disease if we contracted the virus as we were unvaccinated. We are now happy that the vaccination opportunity was extended to us,” said Sarita Patra, a beneficiary. Precautionary doses were administered to 4,232 senior citizens on the day.