PM Modi to launch Covid-19 vaccination 10.30 am Saturday: Govt

The vaccination drive will begin with 3,006 sites that will be virtually connected during the launch

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch India’s Covid-19 vaccination programme through video at 10.30am on Saturday, the government said Thursday.

The vaccination will begin with 3,006 sites that will be virtually connected during the launch. Each centre will inoculate 100 people a day to begin with. "This vaccination programme is based on the principles of priority groups to be vaccinated and health care workers, both in government and private sectors, will receive the vaccine during this phase," said the government.

It will use Co-WIN, an online digital platform developed by Health Ministry for real-time information of vaccine stocks, storage temperature and tracking of vaccine recipients.

The government faces the daunting task of rolling out shots at an accelerated pace in a country of more than 1.3 billion people which has long struggled with limited health infrastructure and patchy cold-chain storage facilities. The country has so far reported more than 10.5 million infections as of Thursday and 151,727 deaths.

India’s drug regulator has approved two coronavirus vaccines for emergency use, Covishield, developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University and Covaxin by local company Bharat Biotech and a state-run institute.

Modi, in a meeting with state Chief Ministers on Monday, ahead of the vaccine rollout, said politicians should not jump queue to take the vaccine but wait for their turn, NDTV reported quoting sources.