Kerala Health Minister KK Shailaja, Sports Minister Kadannappally Ramachandran, and Minister of Revenue and House E Chandrasekharan received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on Tuesday as the second phase of the vaccination drive continued in the state.
KK Shailaja and Chandrasekharan took the vaccine at the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital, while Ramachandran got his first shot from the Kannur district hospital. The Health Minister later appealed to the public to take part in the programme.
"Even the Chief Minister was going to get the vaccine today, but he couldn't due to some other work. But he will take it soon on a convenient day," KK Shailaja told the media. She also urged the public to continue following COVID-19 precautions, noting that the second shot could only be taken 28 days after the first shot.
Speaking to the media, she said that Kerala was able to control its COVID-19 cases in the beginning, and as a result, the death rate is still very low. The minister said that the vaccination drive could be very effective in the state as only 11% of people were found to have antibodies.
"So far, four lakh people have been vaccinated in the state. No serious side effect has been reported so far," Shailaja said.
Over 1000 centres have already been set up in various districts across the state for people to take the jab, she said. Apart from this, a mass vaccination centre was set up in Thiruvananthapuram recently on an experimental basis. The possibility of similar mass centres would also be looked into in the coming days so that more people can get vaccinated at the same time, she said.
To get vaccinated, everyone should register at the prescribed portal beforehand and the shot should be taken on a priority basis.
Barring a slight technical issue while registering, there were no other hurdles reported in Kerala in connection with the registration, the minister added.
Minister E Chandrasekharan also urged people to take the vaccination. He also said that there is no need for any prejudice against the vaccine, as it is safe and painless.
With PTI inputs