Odisha registers 424 new COVID-19 cases

Bhubaneswar, Jan 3 (PTI) Odisha's COVID-19 tally rose to 10,55,980 on Monday as 424 more people, same as Sunday, tested positive for the infection, a health bulletin said.

The state's coronavirus death toll remained unchanged at 8,463 as no fresh fatality was registered, it said.

Khurda district, of which Bhubaneswar is a part, registered the highest number of 151 new cases, followed by 66 in Cuttack. Forty-seven children are among the new patients.

The number of active cases rose to 2,355, while 10,45,109 people have recovered from the disease, including 147 in the last 24 hours, the bulletin said.

The administration has tested 54,793 samples for COVID-19 on Sunday, it said, adding that the positivity rate rose to 0.77 per cent.

Fifty-three other patients have died due to comorbidities so far, the bulletin said.

More than 2.93 crore people have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while 2.1 crore have been fully vaccinated, it said.

Meanwhile, the vaccination drive for the 15-18 years age group began at 939 special sessions sites across the state, a senior health official said.

The teenagers, who have already registered their names on the COWIN portal, can get the jabs between 8 AM to 1 PM, he said, adding that the state government has set the target to complete the inoculation drive by the end of this month.

Students of class 10, who are appearing for assessment tests between January 5 and 8, can take the vaccine after the examination. Similarly, class 12 students will get vaccinated after January 12, he said.

Health and Family Welfare Director and nodal officer for vaccination, Dr Bijay Panigrahi, said that adolescents born on or before January 1, 2007 are eligible for vaccination, and the second dose of Covaxin will be given 16 days after the first jab. Teenagers who have tested positive for COVID-19 can get vaccinated three months after recovery, he said.

The state government has set a target to vaccinate 25.53 lakh teenagers in the 15-18 age group, the official said.

The department has directed the district administrations and civic authorities to complete the drive within January. It asked the collectors, municipal commissioners and chief district medical officers (CDMOs) to coordinate with the School and Mass Education Department to achieve it.

The CDMOs will arrange for vaccination at the schools on an agreed date, and the educational institutions will provide support and facility for the camps.

The schools have also been asked to generate awareness about the drive and ensure that all eligible teenagers in the 15-18 years age group are vaccinated as soon as possible. PTI HMB AAM ACD ACD