In a press conference on Sunday, the Union Health Ministry said a total of 447 adverse events following immunization (AEFI) have been reported from across the country over the past two days. On Saturday, India launched the first phase of the world’s largest vaccination drive, targeting nearly 2 lakh healthcare and frontline workers on the first day.
Over 17,000 people were vaccinated across 553 sites in six states on Day 2 of India’s coronavirus vaccination drive, the Health Ministry said Sunday evening, adding that the number who had received at least one shot was around 2.24 lakh.
The six states that conducted vaccinations on Sunday were Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Manipur, and Tamil Nadu.
On Day 1, 1.91 lakh were vaccinated at 3,006 sites across India after Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the nationwide drive.
The Health Ministry said the drop in the number of states was meant to avoid clashes with immunisation schedules for other illnesses.
The government said a majority of states had planned to vaccinate people over four days per week, but Goa and Uttar Pradesh opted for two, Mizoram for five and Andhra Pradesh for six.
The plan made for the Vaccination Drive by the Government
“States/Union Territories were advised to plan COVID vaccination sessions four days a week to minimize disruption of Routine Health Services. Today being Sunday only six states conducted vaccination sessions,” Dr. Manohar Agnani, Health Ministry Joint Secretary, said.
There have been concerns raised about the safety and efficacy of one of the vaccines being used – Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin.
The drug was cleared for emergency use despite Phase III trials still pending. The government said it was cleared on the basis of Phase I and II trial data.
Also, the officials revealed that a total of 2,24,301 people have received the coronavirus vaccines to date. “India has done the highest vaccinations in the world in a day. More than the US, the UK, and France,” they added.
Asked about post-vaccination adverse events, the Health Ministry officials said a total of 447 cases of AEFI have been reported from across the country. Out of these, three vaccine recipients were in need of hospital care.
The recipient vaccinated in Northern Railway Central Hospital in Delhi has been discharged and so has the one treated at AIIMS-Delhi, they said.
The top officials of the health ministry said. “The vaccine recipient admitted to AIIMS-Rishikesh is fine now, they added. Most adverse events reported were minor including fever, headache, and nausea.”
Earlier Delhi Health Minister Satyender Jain said 52 AEFIs had been recorded in the national capital on Saturday after the vaccine roll-out.
Two vaccines have been cleared for emergency use in India – Covishield (developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, and manufactured by Pune’s Serum Institute) and the wholly-homegrown and manufactured Covaxin.
