Nearly 10 lakh healthcare workers in India have been vaccinated against COVID-19 till 6 p.m. on Thursday through a total of 18,159 sessions, according to a provisional report.
A total of 4,041 sessions were held till 6 p.m. on Thursday, and 1,92,581 beneficiaries were vaccinated on the sixth day of the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination, said the Health Ministry on Thursday, adding that there are no cases of serious/severe AEFI (adverse event following immunisation) attributable to vaccination till date.
You can track coronavirus cases, deaths and testing rates at the national and State levels here. A list of State Helpline numbers is available as well.
Here are live updates:
PM interacts with Covid vax beneficiaries
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday interacted with those involved in the Covid vaccination drive in Varanasi, his Lok Sabha constituency.
Talking through video conference with beneficiaries and those administrating the shots, the prime minister expressed pride over the development of two vaccines in the country to tackle coronavirus.
“The world’s largest vaccination drive is underway in India. Our frontline warriors are getting vaccinated across the nation,” Mr. Modi had tweeted on Thursday.
“This interaction would give first hand opportunity to hear their experiences as well as feedback,” he had said. – PTI
Atmanirbhar Bharat
‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ spirit pervades everyday life from cricket field to COVID fight: PM
‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ mission has become a part of everyday life of the country and its spirit pervades from the cricket field to COVID-19 management, PM Narendra Modi said on Friday.
He also hailed the country’s scientists and health professionals for effectively tackling the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tamil Nadu
TN Health Minister gets vaccinated, State to get additional doses of Covaxin today
Health Minister C. Vijayabaskar on Friday received a dose of Covaxin at the vaccination centre at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) to build confidence in doctors, nurses and healthcare workers.
“I received the vaccination, not as a Minister, but as a doctor and member of the Indian Medical Association to boost the confidence of my fellow doctors, nurses and frontline workers of the Health Department. There should be no hesitancy to take the vaccines,” he told reporters.
SII fire
SII fire was an accident: Pawar
The fire at the premises of Serum Institute of India (SII) was an “accident and there is absolutely no doubt about the integrity of scientists working with the Pune-based vaccine major, NCP president Sharad Pawar said on Friday.
Guterres saddened by loss of life
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is saddened by the loss of life in a fire at the Serum Institute of India facility and hopes that the incident is fully investigated, his spokesperson has said.
Five men died after a fire broke out in a five-storeyed under-construction building in the Serum Institute of India’s Manjari premises in Pune on Thursday, police said.
States’ borrowings
States’ borrowings shot up by over 80% due to pandemic
States’ borrowings during April-December 2020, accentuated by the COVID-19 pandemic, are 82.5% higher than their borrowings in the corresponding period last year, according to a study.
Till December 11, 2020, the States netted ₹4.6 lakh crore through market borrowings. The figure included ₹36,000 crore borrowed by the Centre and passed on to the States to meet the shortfall in revenue arising on account of Goods and Services Tax (GST) implementation, pointed out the study carried out by the PRS Legislative Research, a New Delhi-based independent not-for-profit group. As part of an understanding between the Central government and the States, the latter chose Option 1 for the purpose of meeting GST compensation shortfall.
Data in charts
Data | Covishield and Covaxin currently among the cheapest COVID-19 vaccines globally
The costs of the two COVID-19 vaccines that were rolled out in India are lower compared to others in use around the world. However, the vaccine manufacturers have indicated that they may raise the cost going forward.
The overall cost of vaccination against COVID-19 in India would trump that of others. The estimated cost of vaccinating 50% of India’s population using the cheapest available vaccine (at ₹200 per dose) would require an allocation of more than 40% of India’s FY21 health budget. This allocation would be more than 1.5 times the share of all other routine vaccinations if the FY17 health budget is considered.
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