Free of cost Covid-19 vaccination for all beneficiaries of the 12-14 age group will begin from tomorrow, National Vaccination Day, at all government vaccination centres.

The Covid-19 vaccine to be administered would be Corbevax manufactured by Biological E. Limited, Hyderabad.

This can be through online registration (beginning at 9 am on 16th March 2022) or through an onsite walk-in. This was reiterated by Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan in a meeting through video conference (VC) today with all states and union territories.

This follows the decision of the Union Government to start Covid-19 vaccination for 12-13 year and 13-14 year age groups (those born in 2008, 2009 and 2010. i.e. those who are already above 12 years of age) from 16 March.

Additionally, all above 60 years of age are now eligible for precaution dose from tomorrow, as the condition of comorbidity for this age group has been removed.

The Precaution Dose (same as the previous two doses) is to be administered after 9 months (36 weeks) after the date of the second vaccination. Detailed instructions and Operational Guidelines have been sent to states and UTs in this regard.

States were advised to ensure that only those who have attained the age of 12 years on the date of vaccination are vaccinated against Covid-19. If the beneficiary is registered but has not attained the age of 12 years on the date of vaccination, the vaccine is not to be given. Vaccinators and vaccination teams need to be trained to ensure that particularly for the 12-14 years age group there is no mixing of vaccines.

States were advised to organise dedicated sessions through earmarked vaccination centres for vaccination of 12-14 years age group to avoid mixing with other vaccines.

States/UTs were informed that at present the age of beneficiary in CoWIN is being filtered based on the Year of Birth. The responsibility for verification of age (12 years) will lie with the vaccinator/verifier at the time of vaccination for the first few days as the provision for recording the exact Date of Birth in the Co-WIN portal is under process. Once implemented, the system, by default, will not allow the registration of beneficiaries who are not of the recommended age.

Underscoring the slow pace of vaccination among the vulnerable groups, states were urged to ensure that all those above 60 years of age are covered with both doses of the Covid-19 vaccine.

Regular reviews are to be conducted at district and block levels to ensure coverage of eligible beneficiaries.

Sates were also advised to ensure judicious utilisation of available Covid-19 vaccines. As per earlier guidelines, states can replace those that are due for expiry and also replace them from one district within the State to another to ensure that vaccines are not wasted