Punjab: On Sunday, Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu said the Construction workers will be covered in the first phase of the coronavirus vaccination drive for those aged 18 and above. The Health Department has received one lakh doses of the COVID-19 vaccine for the 18-44 age group, whose vaccination will start from Monday across the state.
An official statement quoting Sidhu, earlier in the day, had said the government had decided to cover construction workers and their family members in the first phase. But, in an amended statement, it did not mention family members but said construction workers will be vaccinated in the first phase.
In May, the minister said all the government employees, construction workers, teachers, and other staff at government and private educational establishments will be covered under the drive for the 18-44 age group. The Punjab government had placed an immediate order of 30 lakh doses with Serum Institute of India Ltd and has been told that 4.29 lakh doses for the group will be given in May. Individuals with co-morbidities are at the highest risk of severe disease and hence 70 percent of doses are allocated to this group in the next phase. The Health Minister informed that the list of co-morbidities is as specified previously by the Government of India, but should be extended to include obesity (BMI>30), disabilities (for example, spinal cord injury), and multiple co-morbidities determined to increase the risk by a treating physician, he said in an official statement here.
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