Kerala ready to give COVID-19 vaccine to children once Centre gives nod: state Health Minister Veena George

Kerala is ready to vaccinate children and will initiate necessary steps once approval is received from the Centre, state health minister said.

Pic Courtesy: ANI

New Delhi: The Kerala government is all set to administer COVID-19 vaccination to children and will initiate necessary steps once approval is received from the Centre, state Health Minister Veena George said on Thursday (August 19), PTI reported. 

George made the remarks while addressing the reporters after visiting a Drive Through Vaccination Centre at the Government Women's College in Thiruvananthapuram. Talking about the drive through vaccination centres, she said its “special feature was that people can get registered, vaccinated and also undergo observation without getting out of their vehicles”. 

Meanwhile, George told about her meeting with Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and said she has asked for 1.11 crore extra vaccine doses by September end for which the Union minister has given his nod. 

“Kerala Govt has already started talks regarding vaccine production in the state. We are trying to introduce fill-finish units. We have discussed the issue (with the Union health minister) and the Centre is very positive,” ANI quoted the state health minister as saying. 

Further, she added, “It was a very positive meeting. We asked for 1.11 crore more doses of COVID vaccines by September end and he (Union health minister) agreed to it. We are thankful to the Union government.”

When asked about the daily high COVID-19 cases in the state, George said it is as the government has ramped up testing to detect new cases. “We are ramping up the testing to identify every single case. Our system is already on high alert and we are taking the best possible measures to contain the disease,” she informed. 

George also said that the Kerala government's aim was to vaccinate all eligible persons above 18 years by the end of September. She also asked people to be cautious during Onam season as COVID cases are increasing in the state. 

Kerala on Wednesday logged 21,427 new COVID-19 cases pushing the caseload to 37,25,005. With 179 additional deaths, the number of people succumbing to the infection mounted to 19,049. The state currently has 1,77,683 active cases, a state government release said. 

(With agency inputs)