A 'Tika Utsav' or vaccine festival will be marked in the country from April 11-14, as called upon by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with an aim to inoculate maximum number of eligible people against the coronavirus amid a surge in cases. Several states such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are gearing up with appeals being made to eligible people to get themselves vaccinated during the duration of the 'Tika Utsav'.
In a call with chief ministers, PM Modi had asked the states to focus on micro-containment zones and reiterated his call to work on the mantra of test, track, treat besides pushing COVID-appropriate behaviour and COVID-management to bring down the peak. He asked states to not bother much about positive cases and focus on more testing.
"Our efforts should be to inoculate maximum eligible people during the tika utsav between April 11-14," he said, asking youngsters to help those above 45 years of age to get the jab. April 11 is the birth anniversary of noted social reformer Jyotirao Phule, he noted.
Modi said the situation is more worrisome in some states with people becoming much more casual in their behaviour and administration appearing lax in many states. This sudden surge had created difficulties, he acknowledged.
"There is a need to improve the governance system. I understand that because of the one-year battle, the system can experience tiredness and there can be laxity, but we must tighten it for 2-3 weeks and strengthen the governance... To stop the spread of the virus, there is a need to work on a war footing," he added.
In his address, Modi underlined that the corona cases have surged past the peak during the first wave and their growth is also higher and mentioned that states like Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat are now reporting more cases than seen in the last year. "Some other states are also moving in that direction. This is a matter of worry."
India the fastest nation to administer vaccines, says ministry
With the total number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country crossing 10 crore, the Union health ministry on Saturday said that India is the fastest nation to administer 100 million doses in 85 days. The US took 89 days to administer 10 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine, while China took 102 days to cross the same number, it said. The Prime Minister's Office also tweeted a chart showing India as the fastest country to reach this vaccination milestone, calling it "strengthening efforts to ensure a healthy and COVID-19 free India". In terms of the number of daily doses administered globally, India continues to remain at the top with an average of 38,93,288 doses administered per day, the ministry said earlier during the day. The cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country stands at 10,12,84,282 as per the provisional report at 7.30 pm, it said.
The extension of vaccine coverage to those above 45 years of age along with recent provisions for them to get vaccinated at their workplaces—government and private—form a series of pro-active, collaborative and coordinated steps taken by the Centre and state governments for safety of people from the infectious coronavirus disease, the ministry said. "This along with the efficient clinical management has thus far ensured that India has the lowest fatality rate in the world [1.28 per cent]," it highlighted.
