Karam Prakash
Tribune News Service
Patiala, December 13
The Punjab Health Department is likely to roll out a new Covid-19 vaccine (ZyCoV-D) in the state by next week.
Initially, it will be administered in Patiala, Amritsar and Gurdaspur districts. Beneficiaries aged above 18, who have yet to receive the first dose of any Covid vaccine, would be administered the world’s first needle-free vaccine. Unlike Covishield and Covaxin, ZyCoV-D will be administered in three doses at a gap of 28 days between consecutive shots.
State Nodal Officer Dr Rajesh Bhasker said, “Health workers’ training in administering the new vaccine will start from Tuesday. By the next week, we will start administering the new vaccine to the people.”
Only around 41 per cent of the total targeted population has been fully vaccinated in the state so far. Around 1.68 crore beneficiaries in the state have received one dose of Covishield or Covaxin, while 85 lakhs have received both doses of the said vaccines.
Bhasker said the vaccine would be administered into dermis (inner layer of skin), located between epidermis and hypodermis, using a needle-free applicator. “The vaccine administration will be painless. Moreover, it has not reported any side-effects so far,” he added.
Needle-free shots by next week
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