Telangana Director of Public Health and Family Welfare Dr G Srinivas Rao today inaugurated India's biggest ever single-day vaccination drive at Madhapur.
Telangana Director of Public Health and Family Welfare Dr G Srinivas Rao today kicked off India's biggest ever single-day vaccination drive, organised by the Cyberabad Police Commissionerate and the Society for Cyberabad Security Council in association with the Medicover Group of Hospitals, at the Hitex Exhibition Grounds in Madhapur.
Addressing the gathering at the program, Rao, who is spearheading Covid-19 care in Telangana, stated that the pandemic would soon be "under control" in the state and that a pre-second wave situation would be restored in just a few more days.
However, he quickly added that it was still critical to follow all the relevant safety guidelines, including mask-wearing and practising social distancing norms.
The official then lauded the work of the healthcare workers and the police force in reducing the severity of the pandemic, and said, "If we have reached a position where we can now slowly revert to a pre-second wave situation, this is not just because of the healthcare workers who have been helping patients since the outbreak last year, but also the police for maintaining a strict lockdown. I haven't ever seen the health care department working so closely with the police as I have in these past few months. The work of both departments must be lauded. For organising this drive too, Cyberabad Commissioner of Police V C Sajjnar's efforts must be appreciated."
Talking about the vacation drive in Telangana, he stated, "We have inoculated 52 lakh people so far. Our target is to vaccinate the entire 2.75 crore population of the state. That means we need 5.5 crore vaccine doses. We have over 1,000 vaccination centres across the state that have been set up so that people can easily find one close to their place of residence. In the coming days, we will be able to vaccinate ten lakh people a day. If the private sector also joins us in this effort, we will be able to vaccinate 12 to 13 lakh people daily. With 2.75 crores to be vaccinated, we will be able to vaccinate the entire state in just 30 days."
"Vaccines will be beneficial in three ways. First, once you are fully vaccinated, you are 90% protected from the coronavirus. Second, even if you contract the disease after getting fully immunised, the severity of the disease will be mild and hospitalisation may not be required. And finally, after a person receives both doses, they no longer remain a spreader. That is why we appeal to the people of the state to go and get vaccinated. Once we vaccinate 70% of the population, we will begin to witness herd immunity. Please do not worry about the safety and efficacy of the injections either. The vaccines are safe. In fact, 90% of vaccinated do not develop any reactions.," Rao added.
General Secretary of the Telangana Super Specialty Hospitals Association (TSSHA) R Govind Hari also spoke at the program. He expressed his appreciation for Medicover for supporting the initiative, and praised the excellent arrangements made for the same.
"What we are seeing today is a vaccine mela, similar to the Kumbh. Unless we organise vaccine drives at a large scale, like this one, we will not be able to address the issue of vaccinating a majority of the population of our nation. I appeal to other super speciality hospitals also to try to replicate drives like this one to help immunise the maximum possible number in the least possible time. Once we do this, we need not worry about any more waves. More super specialty hospitals in the city must come forward and organise similar camps in the four other corners of Hyderabad, including the Old City. Some hospitals are already coming forward to organise a similar program at a function hall in the Old City area. I appeal to the NGOs and hospitals of the Hyderabad to join the hands with the TSSHA in organising a large number of mega vaccination drives," Hari said.
Like Rao, DMHO (Ranga Reddy) Swarajya Lakshmi too praised Sajjanar for repeatedly coming forward with many socially relevant and beneficial programs.
Many police officials and officials of the Medicover Group attended the inaugural ceremony of the vaccination drive.
A record number of 40,000 people, it is expected, will be inoculated by the end of the day. The drive began at 8:00 am and will go on till 9:00 pm. 500 counters have been set up so that people do not have to wait for long hours in endless queues.