VIJAYAWADA: AP Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has sought 60 lakh doses of Covid-19 vaccine for Andhra Pradesh to administer vaccine to meet the first-dose requirements of the listed age groups.
The Chief Minister wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, highlighting the successful conduct of the Tika Utsav in AP, as advised by the PM at the national level, under which 6,28,961 persons were vaccinated in the state a single day on April 14.
Explaining the Coronavirus situation in the state, the CM expressed his thanks to the PM for the supply of 6.4 lakh doses of vaccine to AP in response to his earlier letter. Jagan said, “In accordance with your call for 'Tika Utsav', we have taken up vaccination on a large scale. I am happy to bring to your kind notice that we have vaccinated 6, 28,961 persons on a single day on 14th April 2021 during Tika Utsav. This is the highest single-day Covid vaccination numbers by any state in the country.”
Stating that volunteers played an important role in making the vaccination drive a success, the Chief Minister said, “We could achieve this as we have leveraged the village and ward volunteer system which is a unique de-centralised governance mechanism wherein a dedicated volunteer takes care of the needs of 50 families. These volunteers have been roped in to mobilize eligible persons for the vaccination.”
“The entire district administration is also involved in this drive. Vaccination was carried out in one village or ward secretariat in the jurisdiction of each PHC, both in rural and urban areas with an objective to vaccinate all eligible people in that secretariat. Such a saturation approach not only focuses the entire district administration but also motivates people to get vaccinated through community mobilisation in the true spirit of Tika Utsav.”
The CM explained, “We have not only established our capability of vaccinating over 6 lakh people per day but also set up a model for all the states to emulate. However, we could not continue the same drive as the vaccine stocks have completely run out. If sufficient stocks of vaccines are made available, we are well poised to make your dream of vaccinating all vulnerable people a reality in the next three weeks.”
The Chief Minister requested PM Modi to advise officials of the Union health ministry to supply vaccine to the state soon to ensure that the entire population above 45 years is vaccinated for the first dose in the next three weeks.
