NEW DELHI/LUCKNOW: Seeking to dispel ‘vaccine hesitancy’, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday invoked the success of the Indian cricket team in the recent Test series in Australia as he underlined that “this self-confidence and absence of fear in trading the uncharted path” was also the country’s mantra to conquer the deadly coronavirus.
In separate video addresses to beneficiaries of the Covid-19 vaccines in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi and Tezpur University students in Assam, the PM also asserted that there was no politics involved in the selection of vaccines and attributed the successful vaccine launch in such a short time to the diligence of the country’s scientists and researchers.
Interacting with health workers in Varanasi, Modi dismissed criticism and ‘politics’ over vaccine launch. He said all sorts of things are said in politics but he went by the scientists’ decision. “…It is not the job of us politicians to decide. We had decided to leave it to our scientists that whatever they suggest, we will follow it,” he said. Allaying fears and skepticism about the jabs, the PM said the government waited for the scientific scrutiny to be completed before beginning the inoculation drive.
“When doctors and health workers give a clean chit to the vaccine, it sends a very strong message among people about the efficacy of the shots,” he said and called for achieving the target of 100 per cent vaccination in the first phase. Earlier, addressing the Assam students, Modi said instead of getting frustrated by difficult conditions Down Under, the Indian cricketers took the challenge head-on and looked for fresh solutions.
Similarly, India overcame the initial hiccups in dealing with the pandemic and now, not only is the country completely self-reliant “on this biggest need of the world” but the entire world is reposing faith in the India-made vaccines. “India took fast, proactive decisions instead of compromising with the situation…Our vaccine related research and production capability is giving India and many other countries of the world the confidence of a security shield,” he said.