Mahinda Rajapaksa lauds India for crossing 'mammoth' 100 crore vaccination milestone

On Thursday, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi for achieving a historical feat of successfully administering more than 100 crores COVID jabs since the country's vaccination drive began. In a tweet, Sri Lankan Prime Minister said, "Congratulations to PM @narendramodi, the medical community & frontliners of #India for achieving this mammoth task. The way forward & adjusting to the new normal while staying safe is highly dependent on a successful vaccination drive. Congratulations on reaching this milestone [sic]." On Thursday, India's cumulative COVID-19 vaccine coverage surpassed 100 crore doses, marking a historic milestone. According to the CoWIN portal, a total of 100 crore vaccination doses have been administered to eligible beneficiaries. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the efforts of healthcare professionals and conveyed his gratitude to doctors and nurses as India achieved this historic milestone in the fight against the COVID-19 epidemic. The Prime Minister took to Twitter to praise the incredible effort put in by doctors, nurses, and Indian citizens in attaining this historic milestone for the country. He also described the achievement of this milestone as a "triumph of Indian science." "India scripts history. We are witnessing the triumph of Indian science, enterprise and collective spirit of 130 crore Indians. Congrats India on crossing 100 crore vaccinations. Gratitude to our doctors, nurses and all those who worked to achieve this feat [sic]," PM Modi tweeted on Thursday. 

India's COVID-19 vaccination drive began in January 2021

It should be mentioned here that the COVID-19 vaccination drive in India began on January 16, 2021. Front-line workers were made eligible for vaccination since February 2. The immunisation campaign was broadened on March 1 to include anyone over the age of 60 and those over 45 years with specified comorbidities. Meanwhile, from April 1, it was extended to everyone above the age of 45 years. Further, COVID vaccination became available to all people above the age of 18 on May 1 across the country. 

To commemorate the occasion, Prime Minister Modi and Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya visited the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in Delhi where they met with hospital employees and applauded them for their efforts during the COVID-19 vaccination campaign. It is worth mentioning here that the central government has planned a massive celebration to mark this massive achievement, which will involve announcements on flights, metros, ships, and railway stations. Furthermore, the Centre has also stated that all those villages that have completed 100% immunisation should commemorate the success by displaying posters and banners commending health personnel for their contributions to the mission. 

(Image: Twitter/ @Mahinda Rajapaksa)