Not child’s play covaxin dependent children’s vaccination must not be slow below 15 groups need jabs too

Not child’s play covaxin dependent children’s vaccination must not be slow below 15 groups need jabs too

The vaccination for children (15-18) programme that begins today will be met with relief by schools and parents who had been worried about the delay on this front. The closure of schools has dire long-term implications. Too many students and schools are unable to adapt to online education. Importantly, this is the first time Covaxin will have to do all the heavy lifting, being the only vaccine administered after the DNA-based indigenous vaccine ZyCov-D from Zydus Cadila, which was also approved for 12-18 year olds, surprisingly did not make the cut.

Bharat Biotech had reportedly set a target to manufacture 8 crore Covaxin doses in December. However, the vaccine’s offtake among adults has been poor, barely notching 2 crore doses last month against 18 crore Covishield jabs. The 15-18 age group numbers around 10 crore and BB must start meeting its production targets after failing short throughout 2021. The “precautionary dose” programme for health/frontline workers and senior citizens may also need Covaxin doses, if NTAGI recommends mixing and matching of vaccines, and makes Covaxin the third dose for those double-dosed with Covishield. Unless Covovax and Corbevax, two other vaccines recently approved, are allowed to join the adult vaccination drive.

The latter two vaccines are also undergoing trials on children. More clarity is also needed on ZyCov-D, of which GoI had ordered 1 crore doses in November. All school-going children, not just the 15-18 cohort, must get jabbed too because foundational learning is just as important. Supplies could be a constraining factor in expanding child vaccination since the 5-14 age group is estimated to number around 24 crore. But the limited start today will give governments an idea of demand, supply requirements and logistical challenges facing child vaccination.

With CoWin recording nearly 6 lakh registrations by Sunday afternoon for the 15-18 category, teachers can play a key role in more rapidly enlisting children from classrooms since nearly 80% and 50% respectively of children around this age group are enrolled in Classes 9-10 and 11-12. Governments must also be alert for social media driven misinformation. The National Immunisation Programme for children frequently runs into misinformation propagated by anti-vaxxer sections. Ideally, children’s vaccination should be a quick affair, targeting full coverage by March. If supply constraints exist, GoI must publish information on how many Covaxin doses are available alongside a timeline for vaccinating younger children.