New Delhi, December 21: Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on Monday said that India can be in a position to give first COVID-19 vaccine shot to people in January 2021. According to a tweet by ANI, the Health Minister said that the Central government along with state governments has been making preparations at state, district and block levels for the past 4 months. "Our first priority has been safety and effectiveness of vaccines. We don't want to compromise on that. I personally feel, maybe in any week of January, we can be in position to give first COVID vaccine shot to people of India", Vardhan said.

Giving details about the COVID-19 vaccination drive in India, Vardhan said that the government has formed task forces at state, district and block levels and thousands of master trainers have been trained across the country. "We've conducted training at state level & trained over 20,0 00 workers in about 260 districts", the Minister said. Vardhan further said that after consultation with experts, the government has prioritized 30 crore people for COVID-19 vaccine. It includes health workers, frontline workers like police, military and sanitation staff, people above 50 years and those who are below 50 years but are suffering from certain diseases. Coronavirus Is of Natural Origin, Not Invention of Man, Says Russian Vaccine Maker.

Here's the tweet:

When the Health Minister was asked if COVID-19 can be eradicated like polio, he said Polio and COVID-19 are two different diseases. Vardhan added saying that while it was scientifically possible to eradicate polio, coronavirus will also subside and people shall come across its sporadic occurrences. The Health Minister said that the worst is over concerning coronavirus in the country but people still need to follow appropriate behaviour to stay safe.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 21, 2020 08:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).