28th Feb 2021 10:02:PM Editorials
Eastern Sentinel Arunachal News

February 28, 2021 turned out to be a red-letter day in the history of Arunachal’s battle with Covid-19 as the state earned the distinction of becoming fully Covid-free on the day and that too at a time when there’s a resurgence of the lethal virus in multiple states. With the discharge of three active cases and with no daily additions for the last 9 days, the state’s recovery rate is now at an enviable 99.66 %, which is above the current national average and the positivity rate is also 0%, the best achievable figure. Thankfully, the news has arrived just a day ahead of the 2nd phase's commencement, a more critical one than the 1st, particularly in terms of size of targeted beneficiaries and certain other factors and this will presumably allow the state to take the approaching challenge in a tension-free manner. Half of the battle has been won though, overconfidence must not invade citizens’ mindset, with the reminder that all SOPs are still valid, until the dual shots are taken.  

The vaccination’s second phase which begins from Monday will be extremely crucial for the country not just due to the size of the targeted groups which will hover around 27 crore, but also since it will be having 10 crore over-60 people in it and the rest 17 crore falling under 45-59 years age group with specific comorbidities. In other words, over the next 5 months, health authorities will be dealing with a lot which is by and large medically sensitive compared to the rest of the population. Capping the per-dose price to Rs 250 at private facilities will not invite much criticism and it has also been a right decision to include the provision of walk-in registration at Covid Vaccination Centres (CVCs) over and above the online facility through Co-WIN platform/app. As part of the plan, to make the vaccination process less cumbersome, there will be volunteers to help those preferring the walk-in option and Aadhar has also not been made a compulsory photo identity document. For Arunachal Pradesh, the walk-in option should prove beneficial since issues relating to steady internet connectivity, a must for the online choice will invariably crop up. A fair amount of confidence about the vaccine by now has developed amongst people across the country and the state and in the 2nd phase it should be leveraged to reach the numerical target(s) across all administrative units like districts, Blocks, Circles, panchayats etc. Besides the state’s CBOs, student bodies and all socially-active organisations who should be thanked for the role they played in the achievement, the PRIs which are now active should play a proactive part in the process.

The state must retain and sustain the tempo and carry it over all throughout the end of 2nd phase.


Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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