A total of 220.67 crore COVID vaccine doses have been administered across the country as on December 21 this year, according to data released by the Health Ministry on Wednesday. However, only 22.88 crore precautionary or booster doses have been administered across the country among the eligible adult population.
The data also showed that over 97% of eligible citizens received the first dose of the vaccine, while over 90% received a second dose.
Despite the recent increase of people infected with the JN.1 COVID variant, the Health Ministry has ruled out the need for any additional booster or precautionary doses to be administered to the general public. It has, however, issued a recent alert to States asking them to step up testing and surveillance in preparation for any further surge in cases.
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JN.1 cases spike
A total of 109 JN.1 COVID variant cases have been reported from across the country till December 26. According to sources, there have been 36 cases reported from Gujarat, 34 from Karnataka, 14 from Goa, nine from Maharashtra, six from Kerala, four from Rajasthan, four from Tamil Nadu, and two from Telangana.
India launched its national COVID-19 vaccination programme on January 16, 2021, starting by vaccinating health care and front line workers, and senior citizens, subsequently expanding to reach all citizens aged 12 years and above.
“With the administration of 200 crore COVID vaccine doses across the country on 17th July 2022, India achieved a significant milestone of administering over 100 crore doses of COVID vaccines to its eligible adult population in just 9 months and another set of 100 crores vaccine doses have been administered in the next 9 months, depicting sustainability,” said the Ministry.
