India was able to provide COVID-19 vaccines to over 100 countries with philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: ICMR Latest Videos
News 24
Dr Balram Bhargava, DG ICMR said that the country was able to provide vaccines to over 100 countries in line with our philosophy of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam'.
Speaking to ANI during the launch of commemorative postal stamps on indigenously developed Covaxin to mark one year of the vaccination drive, Dr Bhargava said, "It's the largest vaccination drive in the world. We've administered over 156 crore doses in a year and were able to provide vaccines to over 100 countries in line with our philosophy of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam'." "It's a great satisfaction for our country that we did not need to ask any country for the vaccine doses," the ICMR official said
Speaking about the Omicron variant of coronavirus infection, he said, "We are in the midst of the Omicron variant. Although it's slightly milder, it spreads very fast. We are worried about it and have started giving a precautionary dose to people above 60 years of age and people with comorbidities."
Dr Bhargana further said that hopefully, the country will do much better this time with the lesser of hospitalisations and serious diseases with a large population.
Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya who virtually attended the event informed that around 70 per cent of India's adults have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 while 93 per cent received the first jab.
"The drive was rolled out on January 16 last year with healthcare workers getting inoculated in the first phase," the health minister said.
"Today is an important day for us as we have completed one year of vaccine drive. The world is amazed by our vaccination drive and over 156 crore doses administered," he added.