Two-day Covid-19 vaccination dry run begins in two Gujarat districts

A dry run has begun in Rajkot and Gandhinagar districts of Gujarat

A two-day dry run to check the preparedness of health authorities for a future nationwide COVID-19 vaccination programme began on Monday in Rajkot and Gandhinagar districts of Gujarat, officials said.

Gujarat is one of the four states chosen by the Centre to conduct the mock COVID-19 vaccination drive.

"In Gujarat, the dry run is being carried out in Rajkot district, Rajkot city, Gandhinagar district and Gandhinagar city," State Immunisation Office Dr Nayan Jani told reporters.

He said local health officials of these districts and cities will engage in administrative work on the first day of the drive.

"The actual field visits will begin on Tuesday," Jani said, adding that actual (potential) vaccine shots will not be administered on people during the dry run.

Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation (GMC) has identified 125 beneficiaries in the city who will be covered during the mock drill on Tuesday, said GMC Health Officer Dr Kalpesh Goswami.

He said a total of 50 health personnel will visit the identified beneficiaries at five different sites in the city.

"On Monday, we will be doing only administrative and paper work, such as uploading data of beneficiaries, manpower and cold chain infrastructure on Co-WIN (a central software application developed for the vaccination drive)," he said.