As fears continue to rise over the emergence of a new variant of the coronavirus called Omicron, health officials rue that a sizable chunk of the district’s population — around 10% — are hesitating to receive their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine due to misplaced fears over its efficacy and side effects.
According to District Medical and Health Officer (DMHO) P. Surya Narayana, 10.65% of the district’s population is yet to receive at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. He said that with COVID-19 cases on the decline and things returning to normal, many people seem to think that they do not need to get vaccinated for the virus anymore.
According to the DMHO, 89.35% of people in the district have taken their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, while around 72% of people have taken both their doses. But many are now hesitating to take the vaccine, despite the health authorities willing to administer them the vaccine right at their doorstep, he said.
“There was a time when people stood in long queues from the early hours of the day to take the vaccine. Many remained unvaccinated due to vaccine shortage or some other reasons. But now, we have a stock of 4.30 lakh doses, but people are not coming forward due to several apprehensions regarding side effects. But amid fear of new variants across the world, it is high time that people take the vaccine he appealed,” he said.
The DMHO also expressed concern over COVID-19 norms being violated at public places, tourist spots and social gatherings. He appealed people not to let their guard down.
As per the CoWIN dashboard, around 52.31 lakh people from the district have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Out of them, 21.53 lakh have taken both their doses, while 30.78 lakh have taken their first dose.
123 recover in last two days
Meanwhile, 54 persons who were undergoing treatment for COVID-19 have recovered completely in the last 24 hours, ending Monday morning, taking the total number of recoveries to 1,57,310. The total number of people who recovered from the virus in the last two days is 123. The recovery rate in the district has also increased to 99%.
In the last 24 hours, 12 new COVID-19 cases were reported, taking the cumulative tally to 1,58,886. The death toll stands at 1,103 as no COVID-19 death was reported in the last 24 hours. Active cases have further declined to 473.
