Covid-19 vaccine doses given in India cross 331 million: Health ministry

India’s average daily vaccinations doubled in June to over 4 million from nearly 2 million in May. So far, 331 million doses have been administered in the country. The health ministry has said India is taking a distinct lead in total vaccine doses administered in the world.

While almost half of the population above 60 years of age has received at least one dose of the Covid vaccine, only 15 per cent of those in the 18 to 44 category have got one dose so far. 

In the eight days following the launch of the new vaccine policy on June 21, India has administered 46 million doses. “It is more than the population of Iraq, Canada, Saudi Arabia, and Malaysia. The average doses given in the period is more than the population of Finland, Norway and New Zealand,” said Lav Aggarwal, joint secretary, health ministry.

The government has said it would take steps to ramp up availability and production of domestic vaccines in the coming days. In the last two months, health ministry data shows more doses have been given in rural than urban areas.