Andhra Pradesh on the first day of its COVID-19 vaccination drive managed to vaccinate 19,108 frontline workers (61 per cent) by 8.30 pm on Saturday against a target of 31,570, as per the officials. The officials said that the highest number of vaccination sessions, at 33, was held in East Godavari district. However, the highest number of beneficiaries was recorded in Guntur, at 2,274.
"Vaccination will continue till completion of today's target - 33,200 beneficiaries," said an official statement. The target, however, could not be achieved by the time the latest numbers arrived, which also showed some inconsistency in the targeted vaccinations.
Likewise, none of the districts managed to achieve all the targeted number of vaccinations on the first day.
In Prakasam district, only 436 of the planned 2,200 vaccinations were done. In terms of percentage, Andhra Pradesh managed to vaccinate only 61 per cent of the targeted numbers.
The officials had identified 3.87 lakh frontline workers at across 332 locations in the state to administer the vaccine. The first vaccine was given to B Pushpa Kumari, a sanitation staff member, by nurse Ch Nagajyothi in the presence of the Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.
The Chief Minister on Saturday launched the vaccination drive at Government General Hospital (GGH) in Vijayawada. Besides reviewing the process and technical aspects, the Chief Minister has also unveiled a poster on COVID-19 vaccine.
Hon'ble CM @ysjagan launched the first #COVID19 vaccination drive from Govt General Hospital, Vijaywada. The first vaccine was administered to a healthcare worker. 332 centers across AP have begun the vaccination process, helping 3.83 lakh medical personnel. pic.twitter.com/r9O5hLIX6k
— CMO Andhra Pradesh (@AndhraPradeshCM) January 16, 2021
Along with the Chief Minister, Health Minister Alla Nani, aka Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas, Minister Perni Venkataramaiah, Chief Secretary Adithyanath Das and other representatives and senior officials were also present at the event.
Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan congratulated Indian scientists and doctors for successfully launching the vaccination drive. He congratulated them for successfully developing, manufacturing, distributing and launching the countrywide vaccination programme on Saturday.
"The scientists with their untiring efforts have fulfilled the aspirations of the people of the country by making the vaccines available to people in a very short period," said Harichandan. He also congratulated other officials involved in the entire exercise.
(With IANS inputs)