Amid slight delay in getting the consignment of vaccines, the third phase of inoculation for 18-44 years age group began on a dull note in Chhattisgarh.
Only 1,693 beneficiaries were vaccinated across the state till 7 p.m. on the inaugural day on Saturday.
Chief Minister, Bhupesh Baghel, formally launched the drive by directly interacting with the beneficiaries present in state-run medical clinics and camps through videoconferencing. Due to delay in getting the vaccine consignment, the immunization of the life saving jab was started only in three divisional headquarters-Raipur, Bilaspur and Durg. In rest of the two divisional headquarters- Bastar and Surguja the drive would commence from Sunday, May 2. The Antyodaya card holders and persons living Below Poverty Line (BPL) were immunized on priority basis and only thereafter the jabs would be given to people of Above Poverty Level (APL) category. A consignment of 1.5 Lakh vaccine reached capital Raipur at around 12 noon and within a couple of hours it was dispatched to district headquarters, an official statement said. Notable, in this phase, the state governments are allowed to procure vaccines directly from the manufacturers. Following the directions of union government, Chhattisgarh had ordered for 50 Lakh doses of vaccine to both the leading vaccine manufacturers of country. The manufacturers, Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech, both will supply 25 Lakh doses each to the Chhattisgarh government. According to an official press statement the Serum Institute of India has sought three months time period to supply the desired vaccine while the Bharat Biotech had not responded till date.