India improves daily vaccination pace, inches closer to 100-cr inoculations goal
India has been achieving new feats every day in terms of daily vaccinations over the past few months. The additional supply of vaccines and approval for usage of multiple vaccines can further boost the vaccination drive in India, shows data.
Where do we stand now?
India recently achieved the target of vaccinating more than 50 crore individuals. With the daily average inoculations hovering at 70 lakh, achieving the target of 100 crore individuals towards the year-end doesn’t seem to be a difficult task anymore. The expected additional supply of vaccines is also expected to accelerate the pace of vaccinations in the country.
As of Sunday (September 12), India has administered a total of 73.82 crore doses of vaccines. Of these, about 56.11 crore are first doses while the remaining are second doses. It means that 17.71 crore individuals are completely vaccinated while 56.11 crore have got at least one dose of the vaccine. The vaccination drive began on January 16 this year.
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The seven-day moving average of daily inoculations shows a satisfying picture as the daily number of inoculations is consistently increasing by the day. The seven-day moving average (MA) is calculated as the average inoculations over the last seven days from any given day on the timeline.
India had reported an MA of 1.96 lakh in the first week on January 24. It has now become 75.46 lakh as of September 10, according to the official data of the Union Health Ministry. Over the last two weeks, the country managed to administer more than crore doses in a day at least thrice.
Complete vaccination report card
A total of six states have managed to completely vaccinate (administer both doses of the vaccine) more than a crore individuals as of Sunday, according to the official data. Maharashtra tops the list with 1.83 crore completely vaccinated persons. It is followed by Uttar Pradesh (1.41 crore complete vaccinations) and Gujarat (1.39 crore). The other three states on the list are West Bengal (1.32 crore), Rajasthan (1.24 crore) and Karnataka (1.20 crore). These states account for almost half (or 47.53 per cent) of the fully vaccinated population in the country. The rest of the states account for the remaining share of fully vaccinated individuals.
Similarly, we looked at the data of populations that have received at least one dose of the vaccine. Here, Uttar Pradesh tops the list with 7.20 crore inoculations as of Sunday. It is followed by Maharashtra (4.84 crore doses), Madhya Pradesh (4.13 crore doses) and Gujarat (3.79 crore doses). Here, a total of 19 states have completed at least one dose of more than a crore individuals. These states include Rajasthan, Bihar, Karnataka, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Odisha, Assam, Telangana, Haryana, Punjab, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and National Capital Delhi.
Considering India’s 134 crore population, it may take approximately 20 weeks from now to administer at least one dose of the vaccine to every individual.
Expected boost in vaccine supply
The vaccine supply in the country has constantly increased over the last 10 months. Further approval of more than one vaccine has made it even easier for distribution and inoculation. Recently, Serum Institute of India (SII) in an official statement said that the company plans to supply 20 crore doses in September. This is more than the approximately 12 to 15 crore doses supplied by the Covishield manufacturer in August.
The central government easily achieved the target of August followed by the steady supply of both vaccines. It ended up administering 16.4 crore doses against the target of 15 crore doses. It even managed to attain the target of one-crore-doses a day for the first time in August.
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Apart from Covishield and Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin, India will now get an additional supply of Sputnik V vaccines from Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories. The company has initiated the supply of the Russian vaccine from the first week of September. Sputnik V also comes with two doses, separated by a 21 day gap.