Covid-19: 10 lakh second doses given in Gautam Budh Nagar, 2/3rd population fully jabbed

NOIDA: Gautam Budh Nagar on Monday crossed the 10 lakh mark for second doses of the Covid vaccine. With this, around two-thirds of the estimated 18-plus population in the district have received both their doses.
So far, a total of 28.1 lakh doses have been administered in Noida. This includes 18.08 lakh first doses and 10.03 lakh second shots. Of the estimated 15.8 lakh people eligible in the district, 115% have received the first jabs while 63% have been given the second shot as well.
Of those who have taken the second dose, around 6.5 lakh recipients are in the 18-44 age group.About 2.6 lakh recipients are in the 45-60 category and less than one lakh are aged over 60.
Officials said though Noida was on top of the list in terms of the percentage of population covered, not many senior citizens were turning up at the centres, especially those whose second dose was due.
“We know that Noida has a large population of senior citizens, but not many are turning up for their second dose. The lack of technical knowhow may be one of the reasons as people prefer to come to the nearest centre and get the dose on the spot. However, we don’t have the infrastructure to allow spot registrations at all centres in the district. We hope the young people will motivate and help the elderly around them so that they can get their second dose at the earliest,” said Sunil Sharma, the chief medical officer.
With a target of around 24 lakh doses, Noida has planned another mega drive at 79 centres on Tuesday. Officials said priority would be given to those coming for the second shot.
“We may be ahead of other districts, but the rate of immunisation for the second dose is relatively slow. We are hoping that most people who are eligible will take the second dose at the earliest, especially those over 45 years as they are at a higher risk of infection,” said Neeraj Tyagi, the district immunisation officer.