BHUBANESWAR: Over 50,000 healthcare and frontline workers along with senior citizens, aged above 60 years with comorbidities, were administered the ‘precaution dose’ of Covid vaccine in Odisha on Monday.
As many as 50,575 eligible beneficiaries including 23,412 healthcare workers, 6,883 frontline workers and 20,280 senior citizens with comorbidities were administered the dose on day one. Speaker Surjya Narayan Patro and many other senior leaders also took the booster dose.
Social distancing, however, remained a concern in a number of vaccination centres, including those in Capital Bhubaneswar. People also resented poor arrangements at some of the centres where the elderly people with comorbidities had to stand in queue for a long time. The drive was carried out in 2,276 session sites of a total 3,616 sites planned for the day.
Family Welfare Director Dr. Bijay Panigrahi said the booster dose was administered to beneficiaries in all vaccination centres except those meant for 15-17 age groups.
Panigrahi said a total 17,52,838 beneficiaries, including 10.47 lakh senior citizens, will take the ‘precaution’ dose in Odisha initially. He said that those who are eligible for the dose have already been informed about their vaccination via SMS. They do not need to register further. “They only need to book slots for the vaccination which can either be done on the Co-Win portal or on spot at the vaccination centres,” he added.
Health officials said though senior citizens with co-morbidities are not required to produce a doctor’s certificate or prescription at the time of administration of the precaution dose, they must consult the doctor.