Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, along with his wife Nutan, on Tuesday, 30 March, received the second dose of COVID-19 vaccine at Delhi Heart & Lung Institute, reported ANI. He took the second jab of the indigenously developed Covid-19 vaccine ‘Covaxin’ exactly 28 days after the first shot on 2 March.
The vaccination was part of India’s second phase of inoculation for those aged above 60, and people between 45 and 59 with specific comorbidities.
The Union Health Minister said that both Indian vaccines are safe and effective. “Neither of us had any side effect after we took the first dose of vaccine. A lot of people still have doubts regarding the vaccines. I urge them not to believe what is being circulated in WhatsApp University,” he was quoted by ANI as saying.
He further said that there were only a few rare cases wherein people contracted COVID-19 after taking vaccines. “Even if someone tests positive after taking vaccines, it minimizes the chances of their hospitalization or admission to ICU wards,” he added.
While emphasizing on the need to observe COVID appropriate behavior, he also said that there were 430 districts in the country where not a single case of COVID has been reported in the last 28 days.
He added that around seven more COVID vaccine candidates are in clinical trials. “While some of them are in the advanced phases of the trials, around two dozen vaccines are in pre-clinical trials,” he reportedly said.
Meanwhile, more than 6.11 crore vaccine doses have been administered since India’s inoculation drive began on 16 January.
Surge in COVID-19 Cases
On Tuesday, India reported 56,211 new coronavirus cases, taking the tally in the country to 1,20,95,855. The death toll increased by 271 to 1,62,114.
According to Union Health Ministry data, there are 5,40,720 active cases across the country, while 1,13,93,021 patients have been discharged so far, with 37,028 discharges reported in the last 24 hours.
India's coronavirus curve had been steadily declining after reaching a peak of 90,000-plus cases in September. However, cases started increasing again rapidly last month, with Maharashtra leading the surge.
(With inputs from ANI.)
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