Women lag behind men in taking Covid jabs in state
: Women are far behind men in Uttar Pradesh when it comes to taking the Covid vaccine jab and the gap is big, according to the CoWin portal that registers the Covid vaccine doses given to the recipients.
While 80.27 lakh (80,27,646) men have taken the first dose, 60.84 lakh (60,84,284) women received it till May 27 evening in the state — a difference of 19.43 lakh (19,43,362), the data shows.
Women got a little over 44% and men took about 56% of the total 1.41 crore (1,41,11,930) first doses administered in the state in these two categories, according to the CoWin portal.
Uttar Pradesh has administered a total of over 1.73 crore (1,73,55,300) doses, including over 1.39 crore (1,39,48,710) first doses and over 34 lakh (34,06,590) second doses, according to official data.
“All our vaccinators at over 5700 vaccination sites are women, mostly auxiliary nurse and midwife (ANMs). Also at private hospitals, the vaccinators are women. We are also motivating women to get vaccinated via Ashas (accredited social health activists) and have made pink booths to motivate women and make them comfortable while the vaccine is administered,” said a senior health official.
Uttar Pradesh’s population, according to the 2011 Census is 20 crore —52% male and 48% female.
The women voters’ share is about 46% in the state. There are 14.66 crore voters above 18 years of age who are also eligible to get Covid vaccine jab, according to the Election Com
mission data updated and released on January 15, 2021. The number includes 6.74 crore women voters. The revision of the voters’ list was done across the state during the Covid pandemic. Vaccinators say women are apprehensive about getting the jab.
“Some say they are pregnant or breastfeeding their little ones. In some cases, women say they would get the jab once they see others in the family having no side-effects, which actually delays their vaccination,” says Sangeeta Devi, ANM at a primary health centre in Lucknow’s Sadar area.
In Lucknow, which has reported the maximum 2,37,327 Covid cases (till May 28, 2021), 2,90,670 women have been given the first dose against 3,95,549 men.
Statistically, all the top five cities with the maximum Covid caseload saw more men taking the Covid vaccine than women in Uttar Pradesh.
Lucknow is followed by Varanasi where 84,415 Covid cases have been reported and 1,62,283 women got the initial dose against 2,40,318 men.
In Kanpur, 1,96,014 women took the first dose against 2,69,930 men. Kanpur has the third highest caseload at 82,201.
In Prayagraj, 1,81,405 women and 2,70,685 men took the first dose. Prayagraj has reported 77,836 Covid-19 cases till now. (If the first and second doses are taken together, 3,27, 071 men took the jabs against 2,16,441 women in Prayagraj, according to district nodal officer for Covid-19 vaccination Dr RS Thakur).
In Meerut (68,699 Covid cases), 2,01,621 women and 2,51,127 men took the first jab.
“There is a possibility that women stay indoors, and the family thinks they are safe. But this is a myth. Other family members move out of the house and can be carriers of the infection which may target those in the household who are not vaccinated, such as women,” says Dr Abhishek Shukla, secretary general, Association of International Doctors (Lucknow).
Chief medical officer (Agra) Dr RC Pandey says, “Women are also coming in healthy numbers for vaccination, but still lag behind men. Women should also come forward as they spend more time with children.”
Agra, where the state’s first Covid case was reported on March 02, 2020, has recorded 25,483 Covid cases till now. The district saw 1,52,868 Covid jabs being given to women and 2,21,969 doses to men till now.
District nodal officer for Covid-19 vaccination in Prayagraj Dr RS Thakur says, “The reason for women being less than men in the total Covid-19 vaccinations administered in Prayagraj district can be many. Lower literacy rate, reluctance to take the shot by believing false rumours that the vaccine makes one sick, the fear of moving out of the house owing to the pandemic and even the need for getting male family member’s permission, especially in rural areas, are all contributory factors. Even the unfounded fear of a possible adverse impact of the vaccine on pregnant women prevents many from going to the vaccination centre and taking the jabs.”
A total of 4.85 lakh people were vaccinated in Varanasi district from January 16 till May 27, says a senior health department officer.
When asked about the reason for the comparatively lower percentage of women taking the jab as compared to men, chief medical officer (Varanasi) Dr VB Singh says every beneficiary reaching the centres is being vaccinated.
(With inputs from Hemendra Chaturvedi in Agra, K Sandeep Kumar in Prayagraj and Sudhir Kumar in Varanasi)