Noida: 30K from 45+ group left out of Covid vaccination
NOIDA: Nearly 30,000 people aged above 45 years have not taken their first dose of Covid-19 vaccine in Gautam Budh Nagar, according to data from the district health department. Officials said that the health department has now reserved two Covid vaccination centres (CVCS) for the age group.
“The drive-through vaccination centres at Noida’s GIP Mall and Spectrum Mall have been reserved for beneficiaries above 45 years of age from Monday. Each CVC will have the capacity to vaccinate 600 people per day. People do not need to book a slot on the CO-WIN portal as walk-in facility is available for them,” said Dr Neeraj Tyagi, district immunisation officer, Gautam Budh Nagar.
Officials said that Gautam Budh Nagar, with an initial estimated eligible population of 1.589 million, achieved what they thought was 100% coverage of first dose in August. However, they said that the district’s actual population eligible for the Covid-19 vaccine is larger than the previous estimate.
According to the door-to-door surveillance carried out by the health department from September 7 to 16, a total of 56,489 people over the age of 45 were found unvaccinated, said the officials. After holding three mega vaccination drives in September, the officials said that 30,000 people from the 45+ age group are yet to be vaccinated.
Apart from mega vaccination drives, daily vaccinations are also being conducted at around 30 CVCS in the district. According to CO-WIN portal, Gautam Budh Nagar has administered 2,509,399 jabs so far, of which 776,739 beneficiaries (about 30% of the total vaccinated population) are above the age of 45.
On Monday, 8,089 people were vaccinated by the health department, of which 1,406 got their first dose while 6,683 received the second dose.
SUNIL GHOSH /HT
In the last week of September, Gautam Budh Nagar had topped the districts across UP in total vaccinations. “Gautam Budh Nagar was given a target of vaccinating 99,500 people between September 27 and October 1. In the weekly performance report, the district topped the chart with 96.96% coverage by vaccinating 96,479 people,” said Dr Sunil Kumar Sharma, chief medical officer, Gautam Budh Nagar.