Nearly 5.4 million people were given Covid-19 vaccine doses across the country until 11 p.m. on Tuesday, the second day of the new phase of the country’s vaccination drive, as the country’s inoculation numbers fell from the previous day but remained significantly higher than the drive’s previous pace.
India’s latest round of vaccinations began on Monday, with a record 8.5 million doses administered in a single day, more than any other country except China. Despite the drop on Tuesday, daily figures were the third highest since the country’s inoculation drive began on January 16, but daily numbers varied greatly across states.
In Madhya Pradesh, where 1.7 million vaccinations were given out on Monday, only 68,370 doses were given out until 10 p.m. on Tuesday, a drop of 96% between the two days. According to data, daily vaccination numbers in Haryana fell by 75% on Tuesday (128,979 doses administered until 10pm, compared to 511,882 on Monday).
To be sure, state numbers on the Co-WIN dashboard are sometimes updated overnight, either due to data lag or to account for walk-ins.
There are concerns about whether India will be able to keep up the vaccination pace in the coming weeks and months, especially given what appears to be a limited supply of vaccines in the pipeline. Between June 21 and June 30, the central government has set a goal of administering 80 million doses. The Centre set a goal of administering 248 million doses in July.
Senior health ministry officials credited the increase in rate of vaccination on Monday and Tuesday to greater co-ordination between the Centre and states. “We have demonstrated in the past that we have the capacity to administer far greater numbers of vaccines in a day, particularly if you see the example of the polio drive… This time, we have used that know-how for better collaboration. Since states knew the quantum of vaccines that was going to come to them in advance, they were able to execute it more efficiently,” said Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Tuesday.
Daily vaccination numbers dropped in 12 states on Tuesday, primarily those that had seen record turnout on Monday, such as Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Bihar, according to state data compiled from the Co-WIN dashboard.
Explaining the drop in numbers before Monday, MP’s state immunisation officer Santosh Shukla said, “We have fixed Tuesday and Friday for general immunisation and Sunday is a ‘no vaccination day’. This order has been released in March but in some districts, immunisation is being done due to availability of vaccines.”
During Tuesday’s Covid-19 press conference, health ministry officials emphasised the importance of increasing rural vaccinations. “On Monday, 63.7 percent of doses were given out in villages, while 36 percent were given out in cities… This indicates that a rural outreach is possible in the immunisation campaign. VK Paul, a member of the Niti Aayog’s health committee, said, “We are fully hopeful and confident that we will be able to better cover rural areas.”
