Around 25 lakh people in the State who were due for second dose of COVID-19 vaccination have skipped it despite completing the prescribed time interval between two doses. Of them, 15 lakh took the first dose of Covishield and the remaining took Covaxin.
Disclosing these figures, Director of Public Health G. Srinivasa Rao has urged the eligible beneficiaries to take the second jab.
A majority of the people who skipped the second dose belong to urban districts — 5 lakh from Hyderabad,and 3 lakh each from Rangareddy and Medchal-Malkajgiri districts. The remaining districts saw 50,000 to 80,000 people not opting for the second dose.
The State has a population of 4.1 crore, of which around 2.8 crore are above the age of 18 years and eligible for COVID vaccination.
According to details provided by Dr Srinivasa Rao, 2.01 crore people have taken the first dose, and 77 lakh the second dose between January 16 and October 10. In terms of percentage, 71.42% have taken the first dose. However, 25 lakh of those who have crossed the stipulated gap between two doses haven’t showed up at a vaccination centre yet.
Dr Srinivasa Rao said their focus is on districts where the vaccination coverage is less than 72%. Only around 50-55% of people have taken the first jab in six districts including Jogulamba-Gadwal and Vikarabad.
The highest vaccine coverage is in the three urban districts of Hyderabad, Rangareddy and Medchal- Malkajgiri.
