According to data from the state health services, about 54% of kids in the 12–14 age range and 50% of kids in the 15–17 age range have not taken the second covid jab yet. Response rates are particularly low in Mumbai, Thane, and Pune areas.
Pune: In the state, up to 50% of beneficiaries in the 12- to 17-year-old age range who received the first dose of the Covid vaccine have yet not taken the second one.
Experts have attributed the lackluster response to a decline in Covid-19 cases and parents’ ensuing casual attitude. Particularly poor response rates can be found in Mumbai, Thane, and Pune.
According to data from the state health services, about 54% of kids in the 12–14 age range and 50% of kids in the 15–17 age range decided against taking the second dose. Only 28 lakh of the state’s 39 lakh beneficiaries in the 12 to 14-year-old age group have received their initial dose out of which only 18 lakh of these received their second dose of the vaccine.
There are roughly 60 lakh beneficiaries in the state in the 15–17 age group. Of this, 40 lakh received just the first dose of the vaccine, while 30 lakh received both.
Despite the availability of vaccines, state health services officials claimed that a casual attitude by the parents towards vaccination has contributed to poor performance.
As the overall trend of vaccinations was declining, according to Sanjay Patil, chairman of the hospital board of India’s Indian Medical Association’s Pune chapter, it was time to decide the future of the Covid vaccination. Recently, coverage of the daily immunization campaign has decreased, particularly during the holiday season. The number of vaccination doses per day fell below 10,000 during the Diwali celebrations. Less than 500 doses were given out on Sunday in Maharashtra.
According to Cowin data, fewer than 30,000 beneficiaries have received their Covid doses in the last week. Approximately 19,000 doses had been given the week before. State health officials attribute the decline in Covid cases and the lax attitude toward vaccination to declining attendance at immunization centers. Still, they also attribute it to the lack of free doses.
It is particularly concerning because health officials recently warned that if Covid-19 vaccine coverage is not accelerated, approximately 20 lakh Covaxin doses could be wasted in the state.
State vaccination workers have so far given over 7.6 billion second doses and over 9 billion first shots. Additionally, they have administered more than 93 lakh booster shots.
