Why Odisha Need Not Worry About Europe COVID Surge; 80% Covered With 1st Vaccine Shot

Bhubaneswar: The threat of COVID third wave is still looming large with a significant rise in positive cases in several countries, Odisha Public Health Director Niranjan Mishra said on Friday.

“Europe is facing a real threat of COVID-19 resurgence. The upsurge in Europe and China is due to the Delta variant, which caused maximum fatalities in the second wave of the pandemic in the state,” he said.

Mishra said that since Odisha had already faced this variant and high prevalence of antibodies in people on account of the mass vaccination programme, which is still underway, will help prevent the spread of the contiguous mutant. “The possibility of a third wave, however, is still looming large. People should, therefore, remain extra cautious and strictly abide by the COVID protocols,” he said.

Notably, the state saw a significant fall in the COVID cases on Friday, the lowest in seven months, with 170 people testing positive for the virus in the last 24 hours.

Family Welfare Director Bijay Panigrahi informed that 1st dose of the vaccine has been administered to 80 per cent of beneficiaries and 46 lakh doses are available with the state. “The aim is to complete double dose administration as early as possible. Despite vaccination, European nations are reporting infections. So there’s no room for complacency,” he added.

The government had launched ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ vaccination campaign on November 2 to cover those due for the second jab. It also focuses on people who have not been administered their first jab.

Odisha had administered 3,84,32,987 doses of vaccine till 2 pm on Friday. While 2,61,78,540 have received the first vaccine shot, 1,22,54,447 are fully vaccinated.

Notably, the government had revised the vaccination target to 3.25 crore last month.

Also Read: Odisha Revises COVID-19 Vaccination Target To 3.25 Crore People