Punjab CM Amarinder Singh lauds COVID-19 vaccination drive, says 'no fear of the vaccine'

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Saturday expressed joy over the commencement of the COVID-19 vaccination drive in the country urging people to dismiss fears surrounding the vaccine. Amarinder Singh revealed that with the first phase of vaccination drive underway, he had also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting him to provide the COVID-19 vaccine for free to people of lower-income groups.

"I am very happy that the Covid-19 vaccination drive has begun. We have started with the health workers and it will gradually come down to other people. I have written to the PM to request that the vaccine be given for free to people of lower-income groups," the Chief Minister told news agency ANI.

Moreover, the Punjab CM stated that there was no need to fear the vaccine since the scientists and doctors had termed it safe, sharing the example of the Queen of England who had safely gotten inoculated at the age of 93 years. "Scientists and doctors have said that the vaccine is safe. Even the Queen of England has had it and she is 93-years-old, her husband who is 99-years-old has had it. So what is the fear? There is no fear," he added.

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Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated the world's largest vaccination drive, congratulating the countrymen on the occasion. The first phase of vaccination will be free and the Centre will bear the cost of vaccines which will be injected to 3 crore frontline workers. Another 27 crores will be vaccinated in the second phase. 

"The whole country was eagerly waiting to witness this day. Across the country, everyone was asking only one question that when will the Coronavirus vaccine be available. Now it is available and that too in a short span of time. In a few minutes, the world's largest vaccination programme will begin. I want to congratulate the countrymen on this occasion. The people involved in the making of the vaccine, the researchers, the scientists deserve all the praise," PM Modi said.

Under the first phase of the vaccination drive, Punjab aims to innoculate 1.74 lakh health workers over the next five days, covering nearly 40,000 workers a day. The Centre has allotted 2,04,500 doses of the Covishield vaccine to the state for this. 

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(With Agency Inputs)