Karnataka launches vaccination drive for students pursuing higher studies
Bengaluru, Jun 28: Vaccination of students pursuing higher studies started in the state from Monday, Karnataka Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar said.
"There are 24,37,732 students pursuing higher studies in the state. We are starting their vaccination from today.We want to vaccinate students to resume higher education classes," Sudhakar told reporters here.
He added that parents of children below 10 years will also be vaccinated on a priority basis.
The vaccine supply has been increased to make it possible.
He was replying to a query on the consequences of reopening schools and colleges.
"We have to unlock them step-by-step. I won't say education is not important but what is more important is their (students') lives.We need to be extra cautious," the minister said.
According to him, the centre has cautioned the state governments not to unlock abruptly.
Instead do it stage by stage because many may be the carriers of COVID, he explained.
"The Technical Advisory Committee has sought to know whether the second wave is over. This question arises because the infections decreased due to lockdown. To assess the situation, we will require at least a week," Sudhakar said.
Pointing out that it is only a week since the lockdown was eased in the state, he said he would wait for another week to see the effect of unlocking.
The minister said Maharashtra has an infection rate of 11 per cent regarding which there is confusion whether it is the third wave or is it still the second wave.
Speaking about the vaccination drive, he said on an average four to five lakh people are getting vaccinated daily.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
