COVID-19: Centre to launch 'Har Ghar Dastak' campaign next month in districts with low vaccination rate

New Delhi: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday said ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ campaign will be launched over the next one month for door-to-door COVID-19 vaccination in poor performing districts to enthuse and motivate people towards full vaccination against the deadly infection. No district should be without full vaccination, he said during a national review meeting with health ministers of various states and Union territories (UTs), according to a statement by the health ministry. “Har Ghar Dastak campaign to start soon in the poor performing districts to enthuse and motivate people towards full COVID vaccination. Let us aim to cover all eligible with the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine by end-November 2021,” he said. Mandaviya suggested states/UTs to initiate the campaign on 2 November on the occasion of Dhanwantri Jayanti. Around 48 districts have been identified where the first dose coverage among eligible beneficiaries is less than 50 percent. Highlighting the need to accelerate the pace and coverage of vaccination, he stated that there are more than 10.34 crore people in the country who have not taken the second dose after the expiry of the prescribed interval. The health minister also said that adequate vaccine doses are available in the country, and more than 12 crore balance unulitised doses are available with the states/UTs for administering. The state health ministers were requested to ensure continuous oversight on progress of the national COVID-19 vaccination programme. Mandaviya urged the states/UTs to make regional and local level plans with all stakeholders to reduce number of people with vaccination overdue. He also urged for innovative strategies to encourage them to achieve their targets to review the planning and execution of district-wise plans for coverage of due beneficiaries of second dose as available on CoWIN portal, the statement stated. Union Minister of State for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar was also present during the meeting. Health ministers of states/UTs who participated in the meeting were Alo Libang (Arunachal Pradesh), Keshab Mahanta (Assam), Mangal Pandey (Bihar), T S Singhdeo (Chhattisgarh), Satyendra Jain (Delhi), Rushikesh Patel (Gujarat), Dr Narrotam Mishra (home minister Madhya Pradesh), Dr Mani Kumar Sharma (Sikkim), M A Subramanian (Tamil Nadu), Jai Pratap Singh (Uttar Pradesh), Dhan Singh Rawat (Uttarakhand), Dr Subhash Garg (Rajasthan) and Banna Gupta (Jharkhand). State officials along with mission directors (NHM) from other states/UTs were also present. Mandaviya highlighted the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi guiding the recently launched PM Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-BHIM). “COVID-19 has given us the opportunity to analysis the gaps in our existing health infrastructure. We have also learned that in a federal democracy, the Centre and states working in a synchronised collaborative mode can achieve significant milestones”, he said. The Union health minister also requested state health ministers to ensure that plans and implementation schedules for the ECRP-II are reviewed for timely completion of the proposed initiatives and schemes, the statement said. Speaking about India’s philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’, Mandaviya said the country’s pharma sector is fulfilling this philosophy by catering to people with new cost-effective treatments and vaccines. India supplied essential drugs to the world during first wave of COVID-10. The world reciprocated and helped India during the second wave," he stated. Praising the efforts of Indian scientists and researchers, he said that there is no dearth of brain and manpower in India. India is rightly called pharmacy of the world’ due to its quality drugs. It is a matter of immense pride for India that we have manufactured the COVID-19 vaccine and also administered 100 doses in a short span since January 16, he stated. The Union minister further exhorted the state health ministers to ensure that the country’s goals for TB elimination, AIDS control and treatment, and other non-COVID schemes are kept in sharp focus. He also assured them that the Centre will extend all support and assistance to the states/UTs in matters of health. “In a federal democracy, the Centre and states form a collaborative platform. We should work as a team for ensuring Swastha Bharat, Samruddh Bharat,” he added.