Delhi Health Minister Satyender Jain said on Saturday, 28 November, that the entire population of Delhi can be vaccinated within three or four weeks with the help of health facilities such as “polyclinics, mohalla clinics, dispensaries, hospitals, etc.”, reported news agency, ANI.
The Health Minister said earlier on Friday to PTI that, “Once a vaccine is available, we can vaccinate the entire population of Delhi in a few weeks.”
He insisted that the state has sufficient infrastructure and equipment to vaccinate its entire population and there was no need to worry about the storage of vaccines. The national capital must be given priority in the distribution of the vaccine, according to Jain.
“Yesterday, Delhi reported 5,482 new COVID-19 positive cases, making the positivity rate 8.51 percent. In Delhi, the positivity rate was over 15 percent on 7 November, which has come down. This is a relief,” he told ANI.
Jain said that as many as 50 percent beds are vacant in the capital, and 1,200 ICU beds are available, an added, “Yesterday there was some problem with oxygen, but the issue with the oxygen supply has now been resolved,” reported ANI.
A three-storeyed building which is part of the Rajiv Gandhi Super Specialty Hospital is one of the identified storage centres of COVID-19 vaccines, reported PTI.
Delhi Has Sufficient Infrastructure To Administer the Vaccine Within 3-4 Weeks
On Thursday, Suresh Seth, Delhi's immunisation officer, told PTI that the Delhi government has identified 600 cold storage points and 1,800 outreach sites for immunisation programmes for children. “We have sufficient equipment for vaccines that can be stored at a temperature of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius and those that need minus 15 to minus 25 degrees Celsius.”
The officer further added to PTI, “The equipment and infrastructure for vaccines that need ultra-cold conditions (minus 70 degrees Celsius) are not there, but we don't think there will be any problem logistically because the immunisation programme will be carried out in a phased manner.”
"If a vaccine is available, we can administer it to all healthcare workers in just three days... We have sufficient equipment and cold storage space, we are geared up. We won't let Delhi falter," Seth told PTI, stressing that health care workers are a priority of the Delhi government.
Meanwhile, Jain said the capital city was conducting testing more than three times the national average and results show that the COVID-19 positivity rate in the national capital has decreased by 45 per cent since 7 November, reported PTI.
With 41,810 new COVID-19 infections, India's total cases on Sunday, 29 November, rose to 93,92,919. While the active cases stand at 4,53,956 and the number of discharged/recovered cases are at 88,02,267, the death toll in the country now stands at 1,36,696.
(With inputs from ANI and PTI)
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