The cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country crossed the 70-crore mark on Tuesday. The last 10 crore doses were given in just 13 days, the fastest so far, the Union Health Ministry said.
Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya on Twitter congratulated all the health workers and public for the “momentous achievement”.
The seven-day average number of doses administered daily has been consistently improving since August-end. The average daily doses have improved from around 50 lakh in mid-August to 83 lakh at the end of September first week.
To fully vaccinate all adults by 2021, over 1 crore vaccinations have to be done every day in the remaining days. So far, this mark has been crossed on three days - August 27 (1.07 crore), August 31 (1.35 crore) and September 6 (1.15 crore). On Tuesday, as of 7 p.m. 72,40,929 doses have been administered.
The countrywide vaccination drive was rolled out on January 16, with healthcare workers (HCWs) getting inoculated in the first phase. The vaccination of frontline workers (FLWs) started from February 2. The next phase commenced from March 1 for people over 60 years and those aged 45 and above with specified comorbid conditions.
The country launched vaccination for all people aged more than 45 years from April 1. The government then expanded the drive by allowing everyone above 18 to be vaccinated from May 1.
As a share of population
As on Tuesday, 56.6% of the Indian adult population has been vaccinated with at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Also, 17.4% of the adult population has been vaccinated with both doses.
In eight States/Union Territories (UTs), including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Jharkhand, the share of adults with at least one dose administered remains below the 50% mark. In nine States/UTs, including Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Sikkim, the share has increased beyond the 80% mark.
In 17 States/UTs, including Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Maharashtra, the share of adults with both the doses administered remains below the 20% mark. In seven States/UTs, the share has increased beyond the 30% mark
( With inputs from PTI )
