Dry run for COVID-19 vaccine in two Punjab districts

Chandigarh, Dec 25: The Centre has chosen Punjab to conduct a dry run of COVID-19 vaccine on December 28 and 29, state Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu said here on Thursday.

"The districts of Ludhiana and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar have been selected for the dry run," he said in an official statement here.

Sidhu said the dry run is aimed at testing the laid out mechanisms for the vaccination roll-out in the health system.

"It will provide insights on any gaps or bottlenecks so that those could be addressed before the commencement of the COVID-19 drive. The dry run is to be conducted in one or two districts under the overall leadership of the district collector/magistrate," he said.

The minister said immunisation partners the UNDP and the WHO at state-level would support the dry run.

He said the drive is proposed to be conducted in four states-- Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat and Punjab.