As India gets ready to tackle the Omicron variant of Covid-19, the country has reached an important milestone regarding vaccinations. According to Union Health Ministry, over 50 per cent of India's eligible population is fully vaccinated against Covid-19. After being in a dire situation during the first and second waves of Covid-19, India's vaccination drive has gathered momentum since it was launched on January 16, 2021. But with Omicron cases rising by the day across the country (21 cases detected at the time of writing), people can't afford to let their guard down. Pics/mid-day photographers
Updated On: 2021-12-05 09:14 PM IST
According to Union Health Ministry, India has now fully vaccinated over 50 per cent of its eligible population against Covid-19.
On December 5, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya took to the social media site Twitter to share the news. He wrote, 'We will succeed. Congratulations India. It is a moment of great pride as over 50 per cent of the eligible population are now fully vaccinated. We will win the battle against Covid-19 together.'
After facing initial hiccups, India's Covid-19 vaccination drive was launched on January 16, 2021. Initially, the vaccination was opened for Health Care Workers (HCWs) only. From February 2, front line workers were made eligible for vaccination.
The vaccination drive was expanded from March 1 to include persons above 60 years of age and those above 45 years with comorbidities. It was further expanded to all people above 45 years of age from April 1.
From May 1, all persons above 18 years of age were made eligible for Covid-19 vaccination. On October 21, India reached the milestone of crossing 100 crore vaccine doses.
But with rising cases of Omicron variant across the country, India can't afford to get complacent. As of December 5, India's tally has gone up to 21. Besides Maharashtra and Rajasthan, Delhi reported its first case of the Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus. Earlier, cases were found in Maharashtra’s Dombivli, Gujarat’s Jamnagar, and two in Karnataka.
Meanwhile, in Maharashtra’s Pune district, seven people, including three from Nigeria, were found to be infected with the new variant on December 5.
On November 26, WHO designated Omicron - the B.1.1.529 variant, first reported by South Africa two days earlier, as a 'variant of concern'.
