PUNE: Over four lakh beneficiaries received Covid-19 vaccine shots in the rural areas of the district during the special immunisation drives conducted in the past 10 days.
According to the Co-WIN data, Pune rural had registered its highest vaccination figure of 2.04 lakh doses on August 31 and 1.08 lakh doses were administered in a single day on September 7. The Pune rural has a target population of 36 lakh beneficiaries. Of them, a total of 23 lakh people have received the first dose so far.
Ayush Prasad, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Pune zilla parishad (ZP), told TOI, “In the past few days, we have done exceptionally well on the vaccination front. But the challenges remain ahead of us. The manpower crunch and availability of the vaccine are the main issues we have to resolve to speed up the inoculation drive.”
Prasad said they were functioning without over 1,800 staff members on contract (as their contract expired), assisting in health department activities. “From routine medical ailments to the vaccination, it has to be looked after by our regular staff,” he said, adding that the availability of the vaccine would play a major role.
“In August, the Bajaj group donated 1.5 lakh doses, which helped us cross over 2 lakh doses in a single day. I would like to appeal to more corporates to donate vaccines,” he said.
