Sri Lanka begins COVID vaccination for 20-30 year age group; lockdown extended till Sep 13

Amid a surge in COVID cases and deaths, Sri Lanka has started vaccinating its population between the age group of 20 to 30. Sri Lankan Health Minister Dr Keheliya Rambukwella on Facebook informed that steps have been taken in order to commence the vaccination of people aged above 20 and below 30. He further noted that some of the people of this age group working in essential sectors have already been vaccinated. To curb the spread of the virus, Sri Lankan government has also extended the lockdown till September 13.

Taking to Twitter, Sri Lankan Health Minister Dr Keheliya Rambukwella informed about the extension of lockdown in the country. The Minister in his tweet has urged everyone to get vaccinated against COVID. According to the Health Minister, there are around 3.7 million people in the age group of 20 to 30 who will be vaccinated. He has advised the health officials to expedite the vaccination program for people aged between above 20 and below 30. Furthermore, Dr Keheliya Rambukwella expressed confidence that all people aged above 30 will be fully vaccinated in the coming two to three weeks. The health minister mentioned that people above 20 years of age will be possibly be vaccinated before the end of October.

The island nation is currently witnessing a surge in COVID cases and deaths. Amid the rise in cases, doctors and trade unions of the country have also warned about hospitals and morgues reaching their maximum capacities, according to AP. Following a surge in COVID cases and death toll, the Sri Lankan government had extended the lockdown till September 13. The lockdown that was to end on September 6 has been extended by another week.

COVID situation in Sri Lanka

According to Sri Lankan Health Department, as of September 2, the country reported 3,828 COVID cases which brought the overall tally to 444,130 confirmed cases. The country reported 215 fatalities due to COVID which took the fatalities to 9,400. The recoveries in the country have reached 378,168.

IMAGE: PTI 

(With Inputs from AP)