SRINAGAR, Jan 15: The first phase of the Covid-19 vaccine rollout on Saturday will cover 4,000 frontline health care workers across Jammu and Kashmir. About 100 health workers in each of the 20 districts across Jammu and Kashmir will be given the vaccine.
This is apart from the staffers of major hospitals. "For tomorrow we have identified 40 immunisation sites across Jammu and Kashmir and each will cover 100 frontline Covid warriors," Atal Dulloo, principal secretary of the Health and Medical Education Department, told News 18. "Our health workers are getting the priority and it would be followed by other sections," he said. Qazi Haroon, a senior official with the health department said after the health workers, they hope to cover people above 50 years of age and those with comorbidities, followed by the population below 50. Each beneficiary would be administered two doses of vaccines within a month.
Jammu and Kashmir received the first batch of Covid-19 vaccine (Covishield) from the Serum Institute of India, Pune on Wednesday.
As many as 1,46,500 doses of Covishield have been received, out of which 79,000 are for the Kashmir division and 67,500 are for the Jammu division. The vaccines are being stored at the divisional cold chain stores, from where they were dispatched to districts maintaining the cold chain at all levels.
Haroon said choppers have ferried the vaccines to the snow-bound area of Gurez. He said dry runs, conducted twice in the last few weeks, have helped the department iron out deficiencies and be ready for the massive exercise.
Meanwhile, Dulloo said, "Apart from some software issues, we have tested our preparedness and identified where we needed to put efforts. We are ready and there are no glitches."
More than a thousand sites across 20 districts have been identified for the storage of vaccines for all the phases. "Five health officials including vaccinators have been put on each of the 40 sites," said Haroon.
All those inoculated on Saturday will be closely monitored and a helpline would be provided to them in case of emergency, their data will be maintained by health department officials.
As many as 1,915 people have died due to Covid-19 and more than 1.23 lakh have been infected in Jammu and Kashmir.
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