Karnataka: In Yadgir, officials jab people in farms, PDS shops

BENGALURU: With people reluctant to take the Covid vaccine due to unfounded fears, a group of health staff in Yadgir district has adopted a novel strategy to beat hesitancy: They are inoculating people in agricultural farms, ration shops and under roadside trees.
Yadgir district was recently in the news after 1,500 adults in a village shut doors on the government’s vaccination drive by locking their houses and picking up fights with officials.

To counter this, health officials are now carrying vaccine vials on their bikes and scooters and vaccinating people, literally, where they find them.

Indumati Patil, district health officer, Yadgir said their mission is clear: Cover as many citizens as possible to minimise the impact of a possible third wave.

“We realised that they were reluctant to take the shot and some were in denial,” Indumati said. “We decided to collect data on these people from ration shops and gram panchayat offices where they would have registered under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MGNREGA). We have been able to cover more than three lakh people since. The pulse polio campaign experience has helped immensely.”

District malaria officer Dr Lakshmikanth, who is on the ground, admitted that he has had to taste the wrath of the public.

“A misinformation campaign did hinder the drive, but now it has changed. Earlier, we asked them to come to PHCs, but they refused. So, we went to their houses, but they locked up their houses. So now, we are going to their fields,” he said.
Dr Lakshmikanth added: “This is the sowing season and they fear losing their earnings if they get fever or hand pain after receiving the jab. The zilla panchayat helped by ensuring farmers got time off from their work. They are busy sowing tur dal and moong dal.”
Yadgir district has 123-gram panchayats and 519 villages. Dr Lakshmikanth said their work begins at 7.30am every day.
“We make a plan and reach the village by 8am. Our first job is to collect details of those who have registered under MGNREGA. We go to fields or even if we find them on roads, we vaccinate them. Since many people have received the jab, hesitancy is vanishing, and it is making our job easier. We also give them medicines for fever as a confidence-building measure,” he said.