Second Covid-19 wave: Primary health centres see a rush for vaccine

On ground, manpower concern as drive expands to rural, semi-urban areas

It’s around 11 am on a Wednesday. A health worker is busy handing out tokens to villagers who have gathered around him at the Padgha primary health centre (PHC) off the Nashik highway in Maharashtra. Some 30-35 people are waiting in the central hallway. They are all here for a Covid vaccine shot.

Among them is 65-year old Lekhabai, who stays at Arjunali, a few kilometres away. She has come with her daughter-in-law and grandson. “Several people in my village got infected,” she says. “I was waiting for the vaccination drive to start closer to our home. I am a bit