2nd dry run for COVID vaccination rollout begins in Delhi; AIIMS, Safdarjung, Apollo among sites

NEW DELHI: A second dry run for the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out in Delhi is being conducted across several districts of the national capital on Friday, officials said.

The districts include South Delhi, South East Delhi, North West Delhi and New Delhi, they added.

The first dry run for the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out was held in Delhi on January 2 at three sites -- the GTB Hospital, Shahdara, the Urban Primary Health Centre, Daryaganj and the Venkateshwar Hospital, Dwarka.

City Health Minister Satyendar Jain had earlier said the COVID-19 vaccine will be provided to the people of Delhi for free once it arrives and asserted that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government had made all preparations for the vaccination drive.

The officials said 10 vaccination centres have been chosen in South Delhi for the dry run, including the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), the Safdarjung Hospital, the Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya Hospital, the Pushpwati Singhania Hospital and Research Institute.

In South East district, 19 sites have been chosen across three sub-divisions.

The sites include the Batra Hospital, the Fortis Hospital, the Escorts Hospital, the National Heart Institute, the Holy Family Hospital, the Apollo Hospital and the MCW Gautampuri.

In North West district, the 12 sites chosen for the exercise include the Max Hospital and the Fortis Hospital, both at Shalimar Bagh, the Saroj Hospital, the Jaipur Golden Hospital and the BSA Hospital, the officials said.

Four sites have been chosen in New Delhi district, including the Northern Railway central hospital and the Fortis hospital, Vasant Kunj.

India's drugs regulator has approved Oxford COVID-19 vaccine Covishield, manufactured by the Serum Institute, and the indigenously-developed Covaxin of Bharat Biotech for restricted emergency use in the country.

It paves the way for the rollout of at least two vaccines in the country in the coming days.

A total of 1,000 vaccination centres will be set up in Delhi, of which about 600 will be set up in the first phase.

At every vaccination centre, there will be multiple booths, each to take a maximum of 100 people, the officials said.