As nearly 16 lakh people have been vaccinated since January 16, Lieutenant General CP Mohanty, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Southern Command of the Indian Army on Saturday said around 6,000 healthcare workers in the command have been vaccinated against COVID-19 so far.
Addressing the media, Mohanty said, "We have prioritised our vaccination drives. Our healthcare workers in military hospitals are providing sustained support. We have started administering the vaccine to our health workers. Around 6,000 of them have been vaccinated so far."
The Lieutenant-General also said that the Southern Command is the largest Command accounting for the 41 per cent of the landmass in India, ANI reported.
"The command has been actively involved in the management of COVID related issues. We had established multiple isolations centres and quarantine facilities. The challenge was to keep ourselves safe and assist the civil administration. I believe, we have overcome the peak of COVID-19 pandemic. I am proud that our country has been at the forefront of the vaccination drive," added Mohanty.
The world's largest vaccination programme, covering the entire length and breadth of the country, the COVID-19 vaccination drive which began on January 16 aims to first vaccinate millions of its healthcare and frontline workers and reach an estimated 3 crore people by the end of its first phase.
Covishield, the COVID-19 vaccine being manufactured by Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech's Covaxin were granted permission for restricted use in an emergency situation by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) on January 3.
