The East Godavari authorities have come up with a ‘token system’ to ensure that the most vulnerable section in the district gets priority in administration of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Under the system, a token is issued a day in advance to a beneficiary fixing the time and the centre to get the jab.
The district has recently received 40,000 doses of Covishield vaccine.
“The red token is for the frontline staff, blue for those in the 45-60 age group and green is for the persons aged above 60 who will get priority in the vaccination drive as they are the most vulnerable among all groups,” says Joint Collector Ch. Kirthi.
About 250 are expected to be inoculated per day in each mandal.
“The token system will ensure a hassle-free vaccination process as only those with a token will be asked to visit the session site,” explains Collector D. Muralidhar Reddy.
Of the 46,040 healthcare staff including doctors, 27,267 have already received the second dose of the vaccine. In the frontline staff category, more than 36,000 of the 95,964 beneficiaries have got their two doses. In the 45+ age group, consisting of 13.35 lakh people, barely 1.86 lakh got the second dose and 3.4 lakh their first.
According to Ms. Kirthi, 30,000 doses of Covaxin are yet to be received to complete the second dose for those who have taken the first shot, mostly consisting of public representatives, frontline workers and government officials.
District Medical and Health Officer Dr. K.V.S. Gowreeswara Rao tells The Hindu that Covaxin and Covishield stocks are likely to arrive in the district any moment.
