Chennai, Feb 4 (BPNS)

Tamil Nadu health minister Ma Subramanian has said that the state has vaccinated 1.59 lakh children in the age group of 15-18 with the second dose of the Covid -19 vaccine.

In a statement on Friday, the minister said that 78% of those eligible in the 15-18 age group have received at least one dose of the vaccine. He said that of the 33,46,000 eligible in the 15-18 age group, 26,26, 311 have been inoculated with one dose of the vaccine while 1,59,679 received two doses of the vaccine.

Ma Subramanian also said that of the 5,06,050 eligible in the state for booster doses, 4,17,908 have been given the jab. This is approximately 82.55 percent of those eligible for booster dose vaccine.

He however said that even after several mega vaccination camps since September 12 and door-to-door vaccination drives conducted by the health department, 62,64,828 are yet to take even a single dose of the vaccine.

The statement said that 90.42 percent of the population has taken the first dose of the vaccine and 68.97 percent have received the second dose of the vaccine. He called upon the people to get vaccinated at the earliest.

He also said that the hospital occupancy in the state was very low for Covid -19 cases and added that only 10 percent of ICU beds, seven percent of oxygen beds, and five percent of nonoxygen beds are currently occupied in the state.

Ma Subramanian while speaking to BPNS said, “The state is very much on the track in the vaccination. It is indeed worrisome that there is around eight percent of people who are yet to take the jab even after mega vaccine camps and door-to-door movement of health workers. People are to take vaccine and the difference is there for all to see when compared with the first and second waves of Covid-19. However, the booster doses and vaccination for children are conducted smoothly.”