Covid vaccination for 15-18 year olds starts today amid Omicron surge; over 6 lakh registered on CoWin

India will begin vaccinating 15 to 18 year olds from today. The states will have to adhere to guidelines issued by the Union Health Ministry on December 27.

Covid vaccination for 15 to 18 year olds starts today. (PTI photo)

India Today,  New Delhi, January 3, 2022  :  India will begin vaccinating 15 to 18 year olds from today, January 3, even as the country witnesses a sharp surge in Covid-19 cases, fuelled by the new Omicron variant of coronavirus.

The CoWIN app had already recorded over six lakh registrations till Sunday evening. The vaccine option for this age group would be indigenously-developed Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin.

The states will have to adhere to guidelines issued by the Union Health Ministry on December 27.

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya advised states and UT's to provide separate vaccination centres, session sites, queues and different vaccination teams for the 15-18 year age group to avoid a mix-up.

On December 24, the Drugs Controller General of India granted emergency use authorisation to Covaxin for children above 12 years with certain conditions.

HERE'S HOW THE STATES ARE PREPARING FOR THE VACCINATION DRIVE

A Covid-19 vaccination centre for children at Tilak Nagar in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

DELHI

Delhi has released a list of 159 centers for the vaccination of children of 15-18 years starting January 3. Vaccination centers have been set up in government hospitals, dispensaries, polyclinics and Delhi government and municipal schools.

A maximum of 21 vaccination centers are in South West district, 17 in Central Delhi, 15 in East Delhi, 18 in New Delhi, 11 in North Delhi, 16 in North East, 12 in North West, 10 in Shahdara, South Delhi 11 vaccination centers in South East Delhi and 15 in West Delhi have been identified for children.

Special protocols have been prepared for the vaccination centers set up in schools. Every school will have to appoint a nodal in-charge. School ID cards will also be valid for vaccination ID proof.

Walk-in registration facility will also be provided at the vaccination center.

Also read | Amid Omicron scare, Odisha govt withholds decision to reopen schools for Classes 1 to 5

HARYANA

In Haryana, over 15 lakh children between the age of 15 and 18 are eligible to get the coronavirus vaccine, Health Minister Anil Vij said on Thursday. He said their online registration will begin on January 1 while the option for on-site registration is also available.

Vij said a total of 15.40 lakh teenagers are eligible to receive the jab. A separate queue for them will be maintained and dedicated staff will be put on duty for their vaccination. If feasible and wherever possible, a separate vaccination centre for them will be set up.

A health worker shows Covaxin vial during preparation for 15-18 age group vaccination drive in Patna. (Photo: PTI)

KERALA

Registration for vaccination of 15-18 year olds has kickstarted in Kerala with the vaccination drive set to begin on Monday.

Special vaccination centres have been set up. First preference will be given to those who have registered on the CoWin portal. Those students who are unable to register on CoWin will be aided by the Education department. Also, spot registration for vaccinations has been accommodated.

To differentiate between centres for the age group of 15-18 and those for adults, pink boards will be used outside the vaccination centre for the age group. Blue boards will be used outside centres for adults.

RAJASTHAN

Coronavirus vaccine in Rajasthan for the 15 to 18 year age bracket will be administered from Monday,

the state health department set up in 3,456 government medical institutions across the state.

Principal Secretary (Health) Vaibhav Galriya said from January 3, vaccination of those aged 15 to 18 will start in the state.

ASSAM

Assam will start the vaccination drive for the 15-18 years age group in 500 schools tomorrow. According to the state health department, the deputy commissioners of the districts have been directed to select atleast 10 schools (in case of smaller districts) and 15 to 20 schools in the bigger districts for the vaccination drive.

Dr Lakshmanan S Mission Director of National Health Mission (NHM), Assam told Aajtak/India Today TV over the phone, “One health team will be deployed in each school. In each team there will be a vaccinator, a verifier, a person to support the system and there will be a minimum of 3-4 people in each team. The state government has taken this as a mission to ensure to vaccinate all eligible students.”

Assam Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma will launch the vaccination drive at Duliajan in Dibrugarh district, state Health Minister Keshab Mahanta in Guwahati and state Education minister Dr Ranoj Pegu in Nagaon.

According to the state Health department, the estimated population of the age group of 15-18 years in the state is around 18.25 lakh.

TAMIL NADU

Tamil Nadu has identified over 33 lakh children aged between 15 and 18 to administer the Covid vaccine and the drive would begin at their respective educational institutions, a senior government official told PTI.

Director of Public Health T S Selvavinayagam, in a video message, said, "Eight per cent of those in the age group are studying in government-run schools and in private institutions in Class 10, Plus-1 and Plus-2. Our plan is to vaccinate them in their schools by appointing a medical team. After checking the students' health, we plan to administer them with the (Bharat Biotech's) Covaxin," he said.