The cumulative Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in the country neared the 200-crore mark on Saturday, the Union health ministry said. More than 10 lakh vaccine doses were administered till 7 pm on Saturday.
The daily vaccination tally is expected to increase with the compilation of the final reports for the day by late night. Over 14.94 lakh precaution doses of Covid-19 vaccines were given to people in the 18-59 age group till 10 pm, with the majority administered for free under the government's special 75-day drive 'Covid Vaccination Amrit Mahotsav'.
The total number of precaution doses administered in the 18-59 age group has crossed 1,06,32,488, according to ministry data. The 75-day drive to provide free precaution doses to all those aged 18 and above at government vaccination centres commenced on Friday.
So far, 2.81 crore vaccine doses have been administered to those aged 60 and above. As many as 3.79 crore children in the 12-14 age group have been administered the first dose, while more than 6.08 crore adolescents in the 15-18 age group have been given the first dose.
The countrywide vaccination drive was rolled out on January 16 last year with healthcare workers getting inoculated in the first phase. The vaccination of frontline workers started from February 2 last year. The next phase of Covid-19 vaccination commenced on March 1 last year for people over 60 years of age and those aged 45 and above with specified co-morbid conditions.
The vaccination of all those aged above 45 began on April 1 last year. The government then decided to expand the ambit of the vaccination drive by allowing everyone above the age of 18 to be inoculated against Covid-19 from May 1 last year. The inoculation of adolescents in the 15-18 age group commenced on January 3.
India began administering precaution doses of vaccines to healthcare and frontline workers and those aged 60 and above with comorbidities from January 10. The country began inoculating children in the 12-14 age group from March 16 and also removed the comorbidity clause, making all those aged above 60 eligible for precaution doses of Covid-19 vaccines. India began administering precaution doses to all aged above 18 on April 10.
(With PTI Inputs)
