
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday took the second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences(AIIMS) in New Delhi. PM Modi had taken his first dose of the developed Covid-19 vaccine “COVAXIN” on 1st of March.
“Got my second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at AIIMS today. Vaccination is among the few ways we have, to defeat the virus. If you are eligible for the vaccine, get your shot soon. Register on http://CoWin.gov.in,” PM Modi tweeted.
Got my second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at AIIMS today.
Vaccination is among the few ways we have, to defeat the virus.
If you are eligible for the vaccine, get your shot soon. Register on https://t.co/hXdLpmaYSP. pic.twitter.com/XZzv6ULdan
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 8, 2021
PM Modi has taken the home-grown Covaxin developed by Bharat Biotech and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which has been linked to vaccine hesitancy because of its clinical trials status. The Prime Minister’s second vaccine dose was administered by two nurses, one of whom had given him his first shot as well. P Niveda, from Puducherry, who was the main nurse last time, was seen holding PM Modi’s arm in the photo while Nisha Sharma administered the dose.
“I am the vaccinator who gave the first dose of COVAXIN to PM Narendra Modi. Today I got another opportunity to meet him & vaccinate him for the second time. I was elated again. He spoke to us, we even clicked pictures with him,” said Sister P Niveda, as quoted by ANI.
India has been expanding its vaccination programme gradually. The country had started inoculations with frontline and healthcare workers, and went on to people above 60 and those over 45 with other illnesses. In the latest round, all above 45 are being vaccinated. So far, over nine crore people have been vaccinated.
Amid a fresh wave of Covid-19 in the country, the Centre allowed administering of shots at workplaces with around 100 eligible beneficiaries from 11 April. At present, people above the age of 45 are eligible for vaccination.
The Union Health Ministry had recently said that India has surpassed the United States to become the fastest Covid-19 vaccinating country in the world with an average daily rate of 30,93,861 vaccine doses. So far, over 8.83 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered in India.