Odisha all prepared to begin vaccination drive from Saturday

The Odisha government is inreadiness to vaccinate as many as 16,100 health care workerson Saturday at 161 sites spread across the state, officialssaid.

The inoculation drive will begin in all the centres assoon as Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches the vaccinationprogramme at 10.30 am on Saturday, a senior health departmentofficial said.

''The vials have already reached all the cold-chainpoints and a five-member team has been readied to start thevaccination programme at all the places,'' Prof CBK Mohanty,Director of DMET (Directorate of Medical Education andTraining) told reporters here.

The phaseI vaccination drive in the state willcontinue for over 12 days, the official said.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik will join the 161vaccination sites via video conferencing, said State VaccineNodal Officer Bijaya Kumar Mishra.

Health and Family Welfare Department Director andOdisha Vaccine In-Charge Bijay Panigrahi said pregnant womenand lactating mothers will not be given the vaccine. Thoseunwell and hospitalised for any other ailment will also bedisallowed from taking the jab, as per the Centre'svaccination guidelines.

Vaccination of people with active symptoms of COVID-19will be deferred by four to eight weeks, Mishra said.

People aged below 18 years and those who have beenadministered any other vaccine in the last 14 days, will notreceive the jab, too.

The ones who are to be vaccinated will be kept inobservation rooms for 35-40 minutes before being released,Capital Hospital Deputy Superintedent Dhanarjay Das said.