All those above 45 years can get Covid shot from April 1: Government

India will expand the Covid-19 public immunisation drive to include people above 45 from April 1, throwing it open to a much bigger pool as several states battle a second wave of infections. The Cabinet took the decision Tuesday to expand the campaign, which has so far included healthcare workers, frontline workers, people above 60 and those with comorbidities between 45 and 59 years. India began inoculations on January 16.

“After advice from the taskforce and experts, the cabinet has decided that from April1everybody 45 and above would be given Covid-19 vaccine,” information and broadcasting minister Prakash Javadekar said. “The task force has also decided that for Covishield the difference between the first and second doses should be increased from four-six weeks to four-eight weeks.”

The Covid expert group had also recommended giving the first dose to as many people as possible, given the spike in infections, said people aware of the matter.


The government appealed to the public to come forward and take the vaccine.

Adequate Vaccine Supplies
The ministry of health and family welfare clarified that registrations for the next inoculation phase that includes all those 45 and above will begin on April 1 and not today (March 24). The registration, vaccination process and standard operating protocols will remain the same.

People aware of the matter said the move followed a detailed stocktaking exercise by the National Expert Group on Vaccination Administration against Covid-19 (NEGVAC) chaired by Niti Aayog member (health) VK Paul and co-chaired by health secretary Rajesh Bhushan.

The expert panel said that India has adequate vaccine supplies and states have used 50% of the doses supplied to them. Health ministry data until March 18 showed that 186 million vaccine doses have been procured and 74.7 million supplied to the states with 48.5 million having been administered. The statistics indicate that India can ramp up jabs to include more priority groups.

NEGVAC had also advised that a second wave in at least 12 states meant it was necessary for more people to get at least one vaccine dose.

"The choice is between covering individuals with both doses or reaching more people with a single dose," a minister present in the meeting told ET. "The technical opinion of health experts was considered by the cabinet and it was felt that antibody generation begins with a single dose so an individual is partly protected. By reaching more people through at least one dose we are protecting them against Covid-19 at a crucial juncture when all the countries are witnessing a surge in cases."

The government has set a cut-off date of January 1, 1977, for the next phase--any person born before this will be eligible for the vaccine from April 1. It is also making changes in the CoWIN platform.

“There will now be no need for a comorbidity certificate for people aged 45 years to 59 years, from April 1, 2021,” health secretary Rajesh Bhushan wrote in a letter to state chief secretaries. “The Co-WIN software is also being suitably modified for doing away with the need for confirmation of comorbidities at the time of online registration and onsite registration or for uploading the comorbidity certificate at the time of vaccination.”

The architecture of the Co-WIN platform has also been amended to remove the auto scheduling feature for the second dose on the 29th day. Recipients are free to choose any day between four and eight weeks after their first dose. The government has advised that they should not wait beyond eight weeks as it could leave the person vulnerable.