Odisha vaccine beneficiaries not turning up for second dose

They forget date of inoculation due to long interval

At a time when the COVID-19 vaccination drive has picked up pace, many recipients of the first dose have failed to turn up for the second one as they have forgotten the date of inoculation due to long intervals.

Of late, incidences of people forgetting their second dose had been noticed in villages. The interval prescribed for two doses of Covishield is 12 to 16 weeks, while for Covaxin it is 28 to 42 days. In Odisha, Covaxin is administered only in two major urban centres such as Bhubaneswar and Berhampur. Covishield is administered in rest of the State.

“The number of people not turning up for the second dose is sizeable. As of now, 2.83 crore people have been inoculated. About 67% of the State’s eligible population has taken the first dose. But, 72%, whose second dose are due have been vaccinated whereas 28% have not come to vaccine centres,” said Dr. Bijay Panigrahi, Director, Family Welfare, and nodal officer of the vaccination drive.