Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday kicked off India’s four-day 'Tika Utsav' to accelerate the pace of mass vaccination as the country steps up the war against the second wave of the deadly Covid-19 pandemic.
Flagging off the April 11-14 Tika Utsav, PM Modi urged the people to keep in mind the mantra : "Each one, vaccinate one", "each one, treats one" and "each one, save one".
Elderly people or those who may not be much educated should be helped in getting the vaccine, he said, and also asked people to help those COVID-19 patients in getting treatment who may lack resources or information, the PM said.
By wearing masks, people can save themselves and others, he added.
The Prime Minister’s stepped up war on Covid came on a day when official figures showed that India has become the fastest country in the world to administer 100 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine. India achieved the feat in 85 days whereas USA took 89 days and China reached the milestone in 102 days.
PM Modi also asked families and members of society to take the lead in setting up micro containment zones in case of anyone getting the infectious disease, saying this is an important way to fight the disease in a densely populated country like India.
"Our success will be decided by how much aware we are about micro containment zones. Our success will be decided by us not stepping outside homes when not needed. Our success will be decided by whether those eligible for the vaccine get it. Our success will be decided by as to how much we adhere to wearing masks and following other protocols," he said.
"Anyone eligible for the vaccine should get the jab, and for this, the society and administration have to make full efforts," he added.
Pitching for "zero vaccine waste", he said it has to be ensured that not a single jab is wasted.
"We have to move towards optimum utilisation of the country's vaccination capacity. This is a way to augment our capacity," he said.
In these four days of the vaccination drive, targets have to be set at personal, societal and administration's level, all efforts are made to meet them, Modi said.
"I have full confidence that with this people's participation, awareness and fulfilling our responsibility, we will again be successful in containing coronavirus," he added.
This utsav comes after PM Modi appealed to chief ministers of all states and union territories to ramp up COVID-19 vaccination.
"Sometimes, it helps in changing the atmosphere. The birth anniversary of Jyotiba Phule is on April 11 and on April 14, there is the birth anniversary of Baba Saheb. Can we organise a Tika Utsav or vaccine festival and create an atmosphere of utsav?" PM Modi had said in the meeting.
States like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have ramped up their efforts to increase inoculation. They have urged people to get themselves vaccinated during the four-day programme.
The Tika Utsav will start in UP in 6,000 COVID-19 vaccination centres. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath as well as the Governor will take part in webinars too on all four days.
Bihar aims to vaccinate 4 lakh people during the Tika Utsav. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has also asked people to come forward for vaccination to contain the pandemic.
