Jabs hit hesitancy hurdle
Average turnout less than 50% at vaccine sessions as recipients get cold feet; glitches in app hamper drive
NEW DELHI: In the three days since coronavirus vaccinations began in India, roughly 50 people have been given doses per session –half of the 100 on average expected by the government, data released by the Union health ministry showed on Monday, as reports poured in of people being reluctant to come forward to take the jab.
The government said that between Saturday morning and 5pm on Monday, 381,305 people were given doses in 7,704 sessions. Some health workers across the country, who are first in line to get doses, either did not turn up for their appointments, or outages in the digital platform to manage their records meant they were not informed.
The Union government has advised states to call and administer doses to 100 people on average during each session. According to figures collated by HT from across India, the total number of vaccinations by the end of Monday was 429,409.
The turnout dipped from 4,319 on Saturday to 3,593 on Monday (there were no immunisations on Sunday) in the national capital. At the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi, only eight people were vaccinated on Monday, an official said, while asking not to be named.
and chest pain after getting vaccinated, after which he was admitted in the district hospital where he died.
“My father’s health deteriorated soon after getting Covid-19 vaccine shot. Initially, we thought it is normal but, by the evening, when he complained of breathlessness, chest pain and fever on Sunday, then we took him to the district hospital where doctors showed a callous approach towards my ailing father. By the time we reached emergency, my father was dead,” said Vishal Singh, son of Mahipal Singh.
However, Moradabad CMO Dr MC Garg rubbished the allegations and said “Singh’s death has nothing to do with the Covid-19 vaccine.”
“Mahipal Singh died of cardiac arrest; it has nothing to do with the Covid-19 vaccine. The fact came to light in Singh’s post-mortem report,” said Dr Garg. The CMO said that on the orders of district magistrate Rakesh Singh, he had also visited Singh’s place and met his family members who also admitted that he also suffered with pneumonia a few weeks ago.
“We have preserved his lungs, heart and blood samples for further tests. While carrying out the post-mortem, we also observed that the size of his heart was enlarged. It weighs around 500 gram, whereas in regular cases, it weighs around 200 gram. And we also found blood clotting in the heart. It clearly shows that he died of heart attack or septicemic shock,” he added.
At a press conference in New Delhi, additional secretary in the union health ministry Manohar Agnani also said the man from Moradabad died due to cardio-pulmonary disease. The death “is not related to vaccination as per the post-mortem report,” he said.