Kathmandu, March 7: Nepal's caretaker Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Sunday received his first dose of the Made-in-India COVID-19 vaccine, as the second phase of the inoculation drive officially began in the country.

Prime Minister Oli got vaccinated at the Maharajgunj-based Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH) in Kathmandu. After receiving the vaccine, PM Oli urged the eligible group to take the vaccine without any fear in order to defeat COVID-19. The vaccine was also administered on PM Oli's spouse Radhika Shakya, The Himalayan Times reported. Oli, 69, has a history of comorbidities and underwent a kidney transplant in 2020.

According to The Himalayan Times, in the second phase, people over 65 years all across the country will get inoculated against the coronavirus. Nepal earlier this year received one million doses of Covishield vaccine from India in grant assistance and procured another two million vaccines from its Southern neighbour out of which one million is awaited. Mumbai: 100-Year-Old Takes COVID-19 Vaccine, Celebrates Birthday by Cutting Cake at Immunisation Centre.

The vaccine developed locally by the Serum Institute of India (SII) is the only vaccine being administered in the Himalayan nation. India, under the Vaccine Maitri initiative, has been providing coronavirus vaccines to its neighbouring countries. The Government of Nepal from Sunday is set to start the second phase of its vaccination drive targeting as many as 1.6 million senior citizens above 65 years of age. About 6,000 vaccination centres are set up across the country.

Likewise, people above 55 will be administered the vaccine against the disease in 15 districts in the mountainous region. Nepal launched the first phase of the vaccination campaign on January 27 earlier this year and administered vaccines to the frontline workers.