Telangana Opens Spot Registrations For Second Dose of Vaccine, 18+ Have To Wait

HYDERABAD: The Telangana Health Department has declared that only those who are qualified for their second dose of Covid-19 vaccination will be given shots beginning Saturday (May 8th). On Friday evening, the Director of Health Services Dr. G Srinivasa Rao declared that those taking their first dose would not be vaccinated.

Only those who received their first dose of Covishield or Covaxin will be eligible for their second dose if they have completed six weeks or four weeks from the date of the first shot as of Saturday.

Both vaccinations will be available at government vaccination centres, and those who are eligible can register on the spot during the special drive, according to Dr. Rao.

On May 9th, there will be no vaccinations. The need for spot registrations emerged because the Cowin site, which allows people to register for slots, does not allow for those needing a second dose, according to him.

The decision to limit vaccination to the second dose was made due to the low vaccine distribution until May 15th, which was 4.69 lakh Covishield and 2.16 lakh Covaxin doses.

Rao said Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, who reviewed the vaccination drive in the state on Thursday had spoken to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and asked for a minimum of two lakh doses per day for Telangana.

He urged people who were waiting for their first dose shots to be patient and wait because the government was working hard to ensure that everyone in Telangana was vaccinated.

The Chief Minister has set aside Rs 2,500 crore for the vaccination program and the government is looking into every possibility to obtain as many doses as possible.

The special drive will come to an end on May 12th.