Covid: 9 Months Since 3rd Dose Rollout, Not even 1/4th Adult Population Jabbed; Kerala, Maha Worst Performers

Covid-19 cases have been on a steady decline in the country and this has in turn weighed in on people’s enthusiasm to get the third dose of the Coronavirus vaccine. Since India rolled out the precautionary dose in January this year, only 22.24% of the adult population in the country have received the third dose, reports Indian Express.

While there was an uptick in the number of precautionary doses administered after it was made free to all adults in July, the overall figure still remains underwhelming. Just over a fifth of the eligible population in the country has taken the third dose and the 75-day drive for those eligible in the 18-59 years age group ends this Friday – September 30.

According to data from the health ministry, 13.53 crore people have received the third dose in 18-59 category which is about 17.58%. The 60+ category fares better with a 48.5% coverage. 6.66 crore people in this category have been inoculated with the third dose.

Several health panels including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or CDC and even the World Health Organisation has recommended the use of booster shots to improve immunocompromised people’s response to their initial vaccine series. With the virus’ capabilities to mutate, several strands including the Omicron variant developed the power to dodge vaccine immunity and the booster doses improve the chances against compromised immune systems.

Experts attribute the decrease in third dose coverage among people to two main reasons – one, the steady decline in the number of covid-19 infections in the recent past and two, the absence of the need for third dose to travel or for other official records.

Worryingly, two states that were severely impacted by the pandemic – Kerala and Maharashtra – reported lower figures when it comes to third dose coverage. 11.03% of the population in Kerala have been inoculated with the booster dose and the number is lower at 10.63% in Maharashtra.

Other states include Delhi at 19.22% coverage, West Bengal at 22.78%, Uttar Pradesh at 25.57 per cent. Among states that fared well include Ladakh at 52.3%, Andhra Pradesh at 41.13%, Pudducherry at 39.73% and Sikkim at 37.48%.

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