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V Sajeev Kumar
The Kerala government has tightened its noose on people who are yet to be vaccinated. It has now started tracking those who have refused to take Covid vaccines. The aim is to reduce vaccine hesitancy and encourage people to get fully vaccinated.
At the review meeting, Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan made it clear that the government cannot provide free Covid treatment to those who do not cooperate with the prevention and containment activities. Those who are unable to get vaccinated due to diseases, allergies have to produce a doctor’s certificate.
Vaccination drive
The Health Department has been directed to organise a special vaccination drive till December 15.
Teachers and staff of educational institutions, who have not taken both vaccine doses due to illness or allergies, must produce a certificate issued by a government doctor or should get vaccinated before taking classes. If they do not get vaccinated, they have to get a negative RT-PCR test every week at their own cost. These directions were issued to ensure the safety of students, said the Chief Minister.
The government has clarified that these directions were also applicable to employees working in government offices and public places. The Health and Local Self Government will conduct a joint campaign at the ward level to find out those who have not been vaccinated and will administer the vaccine. The LSG core group is required to hold a meeting with medical officers and plan the campaign for completing vaccination.
ASHA workers would be asked to prepare a priority list of those who need to be vaccinated in the area under their jurisdiction.
It is to be noted that State has administered the first dose of vaccine to 96 per cent of the population, while the second dose has been given to 62 per cent. According to medical experts, Kerala is in the forefront in administering vaccines, as the figure is almost double compared to the all-India level.
Meanwhile, in a major relief, Covid cases among students were below 1,000 after the reopening of schools and only around 300 teachers have been infected. After the reopening of educational institutions, 40 lakh students and 1.75 lakh teachers reached schools.
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