A health worker writes the date and time on a vial of the COVAXIN vaccine before administering the jab.
India has administered 14 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine in just 99 days, the fastest in the world, the Health Ministry said on Saturday. More than 24 lakh vaccine doses were administered on Saturday till 8 pm, the ministry said.
The cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country stands at 14,08,02,794, according to a provisional report at 8 pm.
"India became the fastest country to administer 14 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine in just 99 days," the ministry said.
The beneficiaries include 92,89,621 healthcare workers (HCWs) who have taken the 1st dose and 59,94,401 HCWs who have taken the 2nd dose, 1,19,42,233 frontline workers (FLWs) who have got the first dose, and 62,77,797 FLWs the second dose.
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As many as 4,76,41,992 people aged between 45-plus and 60 have got the first dose and 23,22,480 in the age group received the second dose.
As many as 4,96,32,245 beneficiaries aged above 60 years have got the first dose and 77,02,025 the second dose, the ministry said.
On Saturday, the 99th day of the nationwide vaccination drive, a total of 24,22,989 vaccine doses were given till 8 pm -- 15,69,631 beneficiaries for the first dose and 8,53,358 for the second dose.
Phase-I of the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive was launched on January 16, prioritizing protection for healthcare workers and frontline workers. The phase-II was initiated from March 1, focusing on protecting most vulnerable i.e. all people above 45 years of age.
Everyone above 18 years of age will be eligible to get vaccinated against COVID-19 from May 1, the central government said on Monday as it liberalised the vaccination drive to allow states, private hospitals and industrial establishments to procure the doses directly from manufacturers.
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