PM Modi urges officials to create awareness, involve local religious leaders to remove COVID vaccine hesitancy

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday addressed the issue of vaccine hesitancy and asked officials to address the challenge of "rumour" and "misconception among people" to increase COVID-19 vaccination coverage. He also urged officials to take the help of local religious leaders in the drive.

While addressing a review meeting with districts officials, where COVID-19 vaccination needs to be increased, the Prime Minister said, "You have a major challenge of 'rumour' and 'misconception among people'. As we go ahead, perhaps we will see these challenges in concentrated areas. A big solution is to make as many people aware as possible."

Urging the District Magistrates to take the vaccination drive to every doorstep and encourage people to take their vaccine doses, the Prime Minister said, "Doors of all those houses will be knocked where people still do not have the protection of double dose. So far, you arranged for people to come to vaccination centres and have safe vaccination. We will now have to go to every house with the spirit of 'Har ghar teeka, ghar ghar teeka'."

Stressing on the solutions to cater to vaccine hesitancy, he asked the officials to take the help of local religious leaders to encourage beneficiaries to take their vaccine doses.

"You can take the help of local religious leaders, make their short videos and circulate it," he said.

The meeting was held virtually with districts having low COVID-19 vaccination coverage. The meeting included districts with less than 50 per cent coverage of the first dose and low coverage of the second dose of COVID-19 vaccines.

The Prime Minister interacted with District Magistrates of over 40 districts in Jharkhand, Manipur, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, and other States with districts having low vaccination coverage.

India has administered more than 107.29 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses so far, informed the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday.

(ANI)

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