MADIKERI: Officials in Kodagu are caught in a bind as many residents do not appear to be keen on taking their second dose of Covaxin, which is administered 28 days after the first dose. They are worried that with people not keen on getting fully inoculated, the vaccine doses, which were especially reserved for the second round of the vaccination, may go waste.
“Of the residents who have been inoculated with Covaxin, 2,733 have not reported for their second dose. Many have not come back even after two months. All of them are aged above 45 and can directly walk in after 28 days of the first dose,” said Dr Gopinath, RCH Officer. Since the supply of Covaxin is limited, the district has made it available only for those eligible for the second dose. “If they don’t turn up, the vaccine, which has a shelf life of six months, may expire,” he pointed out.
The officials have been calling many residents to report for the second dose immediately, and quite a few are doing so gradually. There is still no clarity on the consequences of the delay in taking the second dose, but officials are insisting that people take it within the stipulated period of at least 60 days.
Dr C N Manjunath, member, State Covid Task Force, clarified that the ideal time to take the second dose of Covaxin is between six and ten weeks. “If the gap between the two doses is too long, and if the immune response is not good, there are chances that the person might get exposed to severe infection. If the gap is prolonged over 12 weeks, the vaccination will enable only partial protection,” he pointed out. An official, who is in charge of the vaccination drive in the district, said that many residents are out of station and a few of them had tested positive and hence, cannot take the second dose till three months.