Vadodara city getting closer to 100% 1st dose coverage

VADODARA: If the official records are an indication, the city is nearing 100% coverage of the first dose of Covid-19 vaccine. But the data seems to be far away from the number of adults in the city if one were to consider the voters’ lists.

Sources in the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) said that according to the official estimates handed over to them by the state government for vaccination before the process started, 13,15,477 persons were eligible for the jab.But the latest data of voters for the civic polls reveals that there are 14,46,212 voters for the VMC polls.
Going by the official data, 97.62% of the eligible population has been vaccinated with one dose and 50.33% has got both the shots. But according to voters’ lists, 88.79% persons have taken the first jab and 45.78% have taken both the shots.
These figures, however, are being seen as estimates and not exact numbers by the officials. Sources said that the electoral rolls and the data of persons eligible for vaccine were drawn at different times. They further said that in areas that were added to VMC limits just before the polls, there were many who took vaccines at the Primary Health Centres (PHC) of the district panchayat. Their data was not included in the VMC numbers even if they were now municipal corporation voters.
With a person allowed to take vaccines at any centre, many staying within the VMC limits took vaccines at the district panchayat PHCs as the rush there was less. At the
other end, since the PHCs were not giving vaccines to persons between 18-44 years of age, many rural residents from this age group came to VMC Health Centres to get vaccinated.
VMC’s medical officer (health) Dr Devesh Patel said that it was difficult to arrive at an exact number of eligible persons. “Some differences will remain, but it is a fact that vaccination has been progressing well,” he said.