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Bill Gates congratulates Government of India as India crosses 200 crore Covid-19 vaccinations mark

 

India has achieved another milestone on Sunday as the country’s cumulative COVID-19 vaccination drive surpassed the 200-crore milestone. It took almost nine months to reach the 100-crore mark and another nine months to touch the 200-crore vaccination mark since the start of the drive on January 16, 2021.

The health experts and the team members of Bihar working on the vaccination drive are not only elated over the news but they are also enthusiastic to keep up the good work so that the state may win the fight against Covid successfully. They are also requesting that people who are yet not vaccinated must rush to the centres to get their jab as soon as possible. Those who are busy during daytime can get the shots at night at the 24×7 vaccination centres.

On this achievement, philanthropist Bill Gates congratulated Indian Government and tweeted,

“We are grateful for our continued partnership with Indian vaccine manufacturers and the Indian government for mitigating the impact of Covid-19."

 Similarly, Melinda French Gates also tweeted, 
“Congratulations MoHFW India and the people of India on administering 2 billion Covid vaccines and thank you to the frontline workers who worked tirelessly to help make it happen.”

 

The health experts and the team members of Bihar working on the vaccination drive are not only elated over the news but they are also enthusiastic to keep up the good work

The sudden spread of Covid-19 had disrupted the entire health system across the globe. India was also hit hard in 2020 by the impact of the virus. During the second wave of the pandemic, our country was in dire need of healing. However, several initiatives were taken in our country to revive the health system, as well as steps, were taken to cope up with the economic and social crisis. In the past few months, things have changed a lot for the betterment of people. The vaccination drive, which was rolled out a year ago, achieved comprehensive coverage in the country with one of the highest populations. It was a challenge to reach 60% of the people residing in the rural areas. There was a need for an innovative and agile strategy to reach the rural population. The pandemic had exacerbated the problem of access to health care and poor health infrastructure in rural India. The digital divide had further widened the gap of accessibility and awareness.

In this journey, Bihar alone played an important role by administering 14,01,34,407 doses of Covid-19 vaccine so far. Among the other states, Bihar’s massive vaccination drive that has been carried out in each and every corner of the state was a matter of appreciation. Several other states also followed the Bihar’s model of vaccination drive to inoculate maximum people in minimum time. The health workers also contributed significantly to save people and fight against the pandemic through various ways.

Several initiatives like Teeka Express were launched to ensure all-inclusive, barrier-free access to healthcare by bridging the immunization gaps through last-mile service delivery. Teeka Express has been designed to reduce inequalities among the marginalized communities and has reached even in regions with difficult geographical terrains. The vans carry trained vaccinators and verifiers who make vaccines accessible to the rural population. They also address the vaccine hesitancy among people whenever required and cater to the demand creation by encouraging uptake and acceptance through community engagement and counselling.