Vaccination for adolescents between 15-18 rolled out in Karnataka
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday launched the COVID-19 vaccination drive for adolescents in the age group of 15-18 years with a target of reaching 31.75 lakh beneficiaries.
Children born in and before 2007 will be eligible for the vaccination with only Covaxin to be used for the jabs.
The Chief Minister launched the vaccination drive at BBMP Higher Primary and Pre-University College, Bairaveshwara Nagara, Moodalapalya in the city.
In other districts, the drive was launched by district in-charge ministers while MLAs led the initiative in taluks.
Deputy Commissioners of districts had conducted preliminary meetings with both the Health and Education departments for coordination and implementation.
The second dose of the vaccine will be administered 28 days after the first dose.
According to the Health department, on the first day it plans to vaccinate around six lakh children in over 4,000 sessions.
With an existing stock of 16 lakh doses of Covaxin available, all the districts in the state have geared up with micro-plans, logistics, staff, etc., it has said.
Speaking after launching the vaccination drive, Bommai said vaccinating and safeguarding the health of children between 15-18 years is important and the government has decided to implement this drive in an effective manner.
Noting that a possible third wave of coronavirus is a big challenge, he said the cases have spiked in the last one week and the government has taken it seriously.
“Based on past experiences, we have to manage it differently. Keeping in mind the improving financial situation, we will have to take strict measures to control the COVID spread. The government is considering it and there is a need for public cooperation,” the Chief Minister said.
He further said cases are on the rise in big numbers in neighboring states, and the government was taking several measures to control the spread in Karnataka with measures like tightening the borders, making RT-PCR tests compulsory, ensuring those entering the state are completely vaccinated, tracking and tracing, among others.
The Health department has said children who miss their vaccination on session days at schools or colleges will be directed to nearby health centres for vaccination.
Vaccination for the children with any comorbidities will be carried out in the health facility under the supervision of a medical officer.
In Bengaluru, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has identified a target of 4,41,000 beneficiaries across 5,482 schools and 577 pre-university colleges for vaccination.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Federal staff and is auto-published from a syndicated feed.)
