 "Venkaiah Naidu")
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit took the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at the Government Omandurar Medical College Hospital here on Monday when the nationwide vaccination of 60-plus age group and those aged between 45-59 with co-morbidities, commenced.
Dravidar Kazhagam president K Veeramani also took the shot at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital here, officials said.
There has been a good response from the public to the drive at the government and private COVID vaccination centres.
"The number of vaccination centres for Covishield are more since the state has received 25.07 lakh doses.Tamil Nadu also received a supply of 2.77 lakh doses of indigenously developed Covaxin," a senior health official said.
Both the vaccines require a second shot after a gap of at least 28 days.
The state government has released a set of guidelines for the second phase of COVID-19 vaccination drive beginning from today.
In a circular issued to all deputy directors of health services, Dr T S Selvavinayagam, director of public health (DPH) and preventive medicine, urged officials to ensure the maximum utility of thedrive by the public.
According to a release from MGM Healthcare Chennai, identified for COVID-19 vaccination, the beneficiaries can avail on-site registration, wherein they could walk into the hospital, register and get vaccinated.
The hospital saw a turnout of 200 beneficiaries on the first day and it expects that many more will come forward and get the shots in the fight against the virus.
The Tamil Nadu health department has given the option to choose the vaccination centre of choice.
Alternatively, people could register on the COWIN 2.0 portal or the Arogya Setu application.
