Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, 8 March, took his second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at Delhi’s AIIMS.
“Vaccination is among the few ways we have, to defeat the virus. If you are eligible for the vaccine, get your shot soon,” the PM tweeted.
The two nurses who administered the vaccine to PM Modi on Thursday were P Niveda from Puducherry and Nisha Sharma from Punjab, reported news agency ANI.
"I have given the second dose of Covaxin to Prime Minister Narendra Modi today. He spoke to us. It was a memorable moment for me as I got to meet him and vaccinate him," Sister Nisha Sharma was quoted as saying.
“I am the vaccinator who gave the first dose of Covaxin to PM Modi. Today, I got another opportunity to meet him and vaccinate him for the second time. I was elated again. He spoke to us, we even clicked pictures with him.”Sister P Niveda, as quoted by ANI
First Dose on 1 March
On 1 March, Modi had received the first dose of Covaxin, produced by Bharat Biotech.
India's vaccination drive against coronavirus started on 16 January, with healthcare and frontline workers getting the jabs in the first phase.
The second phase of vaccination started on 1 March, with people above 60 years of age and those above 45 with co-morbidities eligible to get the jabs.
In the third phase, beginning 1 April, all above 45 were eligible to get inoculated.
Two vaccines – Bharat Biotech's Covaxin and Serum Institute's Covishield – are being used in the country, with more than 9 crore doses administered till now.
India is currently seeing a worrying surge in daily coronavirus cases, in what is being called the second wave of the pandemic in the country. On Thursday, it reported 1,26,789 new coronavirus cases, taking the tally in the country to 1,29,28,574. The death toll increased by 685 to 1,66,862.
This is the biggest one-day rise in cases in the country ever since the pandemic began.
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