Prime Minister Narendra Modi has updated his Twitter profile image to commemorate India’s historic achievement of distributing 100 crore Covid-19 vaccination doses. A vial of Covid-19 vaccination is included in the PM’s new picture. The inscription that is pasted across it reads, “Congratulations India.”
On Thursday, the total number of COVID-19 vaccine doses given in the country exceeded the 100-crore mark. PM Modi congratulated the country on the achievement in a tweet, calling it a victory of Indian science, Enterprise, and the collective spirit of 130 million Indians.
“India scripts history. We are witnessing the triumph of Indian science, enterprise and collective spirit of 130 crore Indians,” he had tweeted soon after the country’s vaccination drive crossed the 100-crore mark.
According to the government data, around 75 per cent of India’s all eligible adult population has been administered at least the first dose and around 31 per cent has received both the doses of the vaccine.
India took 85 days to touch the 10-crore vaccination mark, 45 more days to cross the 20-crore mark and 29 more days to reach the 30-crore mark, according to the Union Health Ministry data. The country took 24 days to reach the 40-crore mark from 30-crore doses and then 20 more days to surpass the 50-crore vaccination mark on August 6.It then took 76 days to go past the 100-crore mark.
The top five states which have administered the highest number of doses are Uttar Pradesh followed by Maharashtra, West Bengal, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
The countrywide vaccination drive was rolled out on January 16 with health care workers (HCWs) getting inoculated in the first phase. The vaccination of frontline workers (FLWs) started from February 2. The next phase of COVID-19 vaccination commenced from March 1 for people over 60 years of age and those aged 45 and above with specified co-morbid conditions. The country launched vaccination for all people aged over 45 years from April 1. The government then decided to expand its vaccination drive by allowing all above 18 to be vaccinated from May 1.
Earlier in April last year, PM Modi had changed his profile picture minutes after addressing the nation and announcing that the first Covid-19 lockdown had been extended till May 3. In the image, PM Modi’s mouth and nose were covered with a traditional ‘gamcha’.
