India administers over 1 crore COVID-19 vaccines for 5th time
What's the story
India administered more than one crore coronavirus vaccine doses on Monday, taking the cumulative number of administered doses in the country to above 86 crore, according to the Union Health Ministry. This feat has been achieved for the fifth time, official records show. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya celebrated the achievement in a tweet last night. Here are more details on this.
Quote
'Congratulations to the nation'
"Congratulations to the nation, as we administer another 1 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses. Under PM @NarendraModi ji, India delivers a punch to Corona - Record of 1 crore vaccines achieved for the 5th time," Mandaviya tweeted.
Details
86.93 crore vaccine doses given in India so far
A total of 1,00,96,142 COVID-19 vaccine doses were administered in India on Monday, as per the data published on the central government's Co-WIN portal at 10:33 pm. So far, 86,93,79,970 vaccine doses have been given to eligible beneficiaries across the country, the Health Ministry says. India had achieved one crore daily COVID-19 vaccinations for the first time on August 27.
Record
India gave out 2.5 crore vaccine doses earlier this month
India had touched the 10-crore vaccination mark in a span of 85 days. It took 45 more days to cross the 20-crore mark and another 29 days to reach 30 crore vaccinations. In another 24 days, it touched 40 crore vaccinations, eventually crossing the 75-crore mark on September 13. On September 17, India gave out over two-and-a-half crore vaccine doses, setting a world record.
Situation
India's coronavirus situation improves; reports under 20,000 cases
India has seen a decline in its daily COVID-19 cases over the past week. In the last 24 hours, the country reported under 20,000 cases after a span of 201 days, registering 18,795 infections and 179 deaths. Kerala, the state currently contributing the most to India's daily COVID-19 cases, also witnessed a significant drop in its figures with 11,699 cases.
Other updates
WHO approval for COVAXIN delayed further over technical queries
Meanwhile, India has decided to resume export of coronavirus vaccines from next month, which it had halted amid a devastating outbreak earlier this year. Separately, the World Health Organization's (WHO) approval for COVAXIN has been further delayed as the health body has sent more technical queries to its manufacturer Bharat Biotech, reports said. The delay will likely affect international travel for many Indians.