Hyderabad: After Hitex, more COVID-19 vaccine drives upcoming

Hyderabad: In spite of apprehension of mismanagement, the state government on Sunday managed to pull-off the massive COVID-19 vaccination drive here at the Hitex exhibition ground. Given its success, the Telangana Super Speciality Hospital Association (TSSHA) is now likely to conduct another such vaccine drive in other parts of the city soon, including the Old CIty areas.

The upcoming vaccination drives, which are likely to be held in different parts of the city, will also include the Old City, said a source, who did not want to be quoted. “For now the COVID-19 vaccine drive will be held only in Hyderabad, given the huge demand,” the source added. When contacted, a member of the TSSHA said that the body will be come out with details of upcoming drives in the next week or so.

A day earlier on June 6, the Cyberabad police along with Medicover hospital and the Society for Cyber Security (SCS) organised in what was possibly the largest vaccine drive in the country. Nearly 40,000 people are believed to have taken the COVID-19 vaccination through the joint exercise.

Dr. G. Srinivasa Rao, director, Telangana State Public Health and Family Welfare, who addressed the event on Sunday, said that 52 lakh people in the state have been vaccinated so far. “Our target is to vaccinate the 2.75
crore population of the state. That means we need 5.5 crore jabs. We have over 1000 vaccine
centres across the state. In the coming days, we will be able to vaccinate ten lakh people in a single day,” he stated.

Apart from the drive that was organised at the Hitex exhibition ground, the state government has also undertaken a COVID-19 vaccination drive to administer the vaccine to taxi and cab drivers, vegetable vendors, journalists, and other categories of people who generally interact with the masses regularly as part of their jobs. Vaccine centres have also been established across the Greater Hyderabad area for the same.