Although the third wave is quickly waning and there are hopes that the two-year-old Covid pandemic will make way for an "endemic" stage, experts said Indians will need to take Covid-19 booster shots. India started its booster or precautionary dose drive on January 10, but only for senior citizens and healthcare workers. "We will have to slowly expand this group to include younger people as well," said Dr Rahul Pandit who is a member of the Maharashtra government's task force on Covid-19.
Dr Shashank Joshi, also a member of the task force, concurred by saying, "A precautionary dose, either once or twice a year, will need to be taken." He said India needs a Covid vaccination strategy. "It is still in the discussion stage, but a vaccination strategy is needed," he added.
A senior Maharashtra official said the ongoing precautionary dose drive was progressing at a slower pace than expected because many people had got infected by Omicron. "People have to wait for three months after the infection to take the booster," he said. The expert view is based on the outcome of the Omicron-Covid wave: Those vaccinated had a milder disease as compared to the unvaccinated population. Doctors said the effect of Omicron, a SARS-CoV-2 variant with a record 50-plus number of mutations, was blunted due to widespread vaccination.
Meanwhile, a survey among youngsters by social advocacy group HEAL Foundation and Saizen Global Insights showed that 95% of them believe it is important to get vaccinated against Covid-19. "We found vaccine optimism is linked to education," said HEAL's Swadeep Srivastava.
