'100 cr vaccine doses target likely to be achieved by Oct 18 or 19'

New Delhi: Announcements will be made on airplanes, ships, metros and at railway stations to mark the moment when India achieves the target of administering 100 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Thursday.

The 100 crore doses target is expected to be achieved by October 18 or 19, he said while launching a coffee table book on Covid warriors.

The total vaccine doses administered in the country crossed 97 crores on Thursday with 73 per cent of all adults having administered the first dose and 30 per cent having received both doses.

"The nation is rapidly approaching the 100 crore vaccination mark! 97 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses administered to date. Keep it up India, let us fight corona," Mandaviya tweeted.

"After 100 crore doses is achieved, we will go in mission mode to ensure that those who have taken their first dose take their second dose too to ensure they are protected against COVID-19," he told reporters.

Mandaviya said that Spicejet will wrap planes with posters of one billion vaccine with images of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and healthcare workers on the day the target of 100 crore doses is achieved.

He launched 13 videos on COVID-19 warriors and a coffee table, published by the health ministry, to pay tributes to them.

From eight states, 13 Covid warriors, including doctors, ambulance drivers, volunteers and other healthcare staffers have been identified as 'Sentinels of the Soil'.