Tirupati: Heavy rush for second dose of vaccination

Tirupati: Senior citizens and people with comorbidities turned up in big numbers at the Urban Primary Health Centres (UPHCs) in the city for the second dose of vaccination on Wednesday. Serpentine queues of people waiting for the vaccination braving hot sun were seen at all health centres where only second dose vaccination was taken up on Wednesday.

With no supply of Covaxin to private hospitals, where many senior citizens and people with comorbidities availed first dose of vaccination in the private hospitals have no other go but to turn to government health centres for the second dose of vaccination.

The short supply of Covaxin resulted in the private hospitals not taking up the due second dose of vaccination leaving hundreds of senior citizens tenterhooks with time limit for the second dose nearing or over in many cases in the city.

The authorities took up vaccination only to those pending the second dose giving much relief to the senior citizens and those completed 45 years of age in the city vaccination done till evening in the health centres.

Some senior citizens complained that there were no proper arrangements for the vaccination forcing them to wait long and also pushing with each other with no staff to regulate.

According to official sources 11,000 Covaxin doses supplied to hospitals in Chittoor district including Tirupati which got more than 5,000 for vaccination which will be taken up again after a few days gap to clear the pending second dose of Covaxin.

Meanwhile, a special camp for vaccination was held in APSRTC Tirupati Depot on Wednesday.

Corporation Commissioner PS Girisha and Health Officer Dr DT Sudharani responding to the request of deputy chief traffic manager (DCTM) T Madhusudhan and Depot Manager K Praveen Kumar organised the vaccination camp in which about 100 including RTC personnel and their family members were vaccinated.