Grassroots health workers fight vaccination hesitancy in rural India

Rumours spread that vaccines can cause impotence amid suspicions that the government is conspiring to kill people.

Villagers in Maharashtra's Trimbakeshwar, about 50 km from Nashik city, would promptly approach Anusaya Dolas, a health worker, if they ever fell ill. An accredited social health activist (ASHA), she had, over the years, painstakingly earned the trust of villagers, she told IndiaSpend over the phone in April 2021. But nowadays, the same people run away as soon as they see her coming. "They run out from back doors of homes or tell their children to make excuses and say that nobody is at home," Dolas said, ruefully. This mistrust is a result of the COVID-19 vaccination drive, as villagers