New Delhi: Even as those above the age of 60 with comorbidities turned up in large numbers the day the precautionary dose of the Covid vaccine started to be administered in the Capital, data from the Delhi government showed that frontline workers are taking the lead when it comes to the "booster" dose.
According to government data, over 1.06 lakh precautionary doses have been administered in the Capital from the day the drive began on January 10 and of these, the maximum has been given to frontline workers — over 51,000 — comprising 47.8 per cent of all third doses administered here so far.
While day one saw many those above the age of 60 lead the drive, with maximum doses being administered to them, frontline workers have turned up in large numbers every day since consistently.
On Friday, CoWIN data showed that of the over 18,000 doses administered till 5:30 pm, over 10,000 were given to frontline workers — a trend that has continued since the second day of the drive.
Significantly, healthcare workers, who are testing positive for the virus in large numbers during this most recent wave of the pandemic, have received just around 25.9 per cent of the total precautionary doses. Even as more and more doctors test positive across Delhi hospitals, it might take more time for all healthcare workers to be given the "booster" dose of the vaccine.
With Delhi government officials saying that there are around 3 lakh healthcare workers registered as such in the Capital, only a little over 27,761 of them have so far been given the third dose of the vaccine - less than 10 per cent (9.25 per cent to be precise).
While officials had said that they have increased the supply of vaccines to administration sites for giving the precautionary doses, they have added that they can further ramp up capacity by 20 per cent if the demand comes.
Meanwhile, the Delhi government's health bulletin from Friday evening showed that the Capital had administered the first dose of vaccine to over 1.63 crore residents and the second dose to 1.18 crore residents.
So far, over 5 lakh minors between the ages of 15 and 17 have been given the first dose of the Covid vaccine even as the authorities are making efforts to raise this number as soon as possible by setting up sites within schools and asking schools to make sure students are vaccinated.