Himachal Pradesh Becomes First State To Administer 100% Of Its Population With First Dose Of Covid Vaccine

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his virtual interaction with healthcare workers of the hill state, Himachal Pradesh, as well as beneficiaries of the vaccination drive against the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) lauded the state for achieving a new feat. Himachal Pradesh has become the first state in the country where every single adult individual has received the first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. PM Modi has said that it was possible only because everyone in the state worked as a team.

Congratulating the state for this achievement, Prime Minister Modi in his address said, “Himachal Pradesh came out as a champion in the fight against this once in a century pandemic,” PM Modi said.

PM Modi further mentioned that the state government of Himachal Pradesh ensured that the first dose was administered to all eligible beneficiaries despite it being a hill state. He also praised people for not ignoring the misinformation that is being circulated on various social media platforms regarding the Covid-19 vaccines.

“Fast-paced vaccination will also be beneficial for the tourism sector here,” reiterated the Prime Minister. Besides vaccination, he also talked about how the recently announced changes in drone technology will be beneficial to Himachal Pradesh. He ensured new opportunities in fields such as health and agriculture through new simple rules.

During the event, PM Modi interacted with Dr. Rahul who is posted at the Dodra Kwar Civil Hospital in Shimla. While talking to him, PM Modi stated the fact that 10 percent of the expenditure can be saved if all 11 shots in a single vial are used while administering Covid-19 vaccines.

PM also applauded the nation for creating a record in vaccination twice in the last few days. For the unknown, India vaccinated more than 10 million people in a single day which is way more than the total population of several countries. PM Modi also made notice of how small states in India are catching up with the vaccination drive. He said, “Sikkim and Dadar & Nagar Haveli have also partially vaccinated cent percent eligible beneficiaries, and other states are catching up too. Now, we should focus on completing full vaccination.”

The speech was concluded by urging the entire nation to remain careful and cautious against Covid-19. PM Modi strictly asked everyone citizen of India to comply with “do gaj ki doori.”

Himachal Pradesh’s chief minister Jairam Thakur, in his speech, promised to fully vaccinate all the beneficiaries in the state by November 30.

Himachal Pradesh’s health secretary Amitab Awasthi gave insights into how the state will manage vaccination drive in the future. He said, “So far 55,43,474 residents of the state have got the first jab of Covid-19 vaccine. More than 18 lakh people have got the second dose. We have also fixed a target to achieve 100 percent vaccination target during the second phase by November.”

Earlier, Odisha’s capital Bhubaneshwar became the first fully vaccinated city in India.