There are at least 15 wards in the city where not even 50% of the residents aged 45 and above have received one dose of the Covid vaccine, according to the results of a month-long, door-to-door survey done by the BBMP.
The survey data, which has been reviewed by DH, shows that 40% of the target population (over-45s) are yet to be vaccinated in the BBMP’s West Zone, followed East Zone with 39%.
Surprisingly, Bommanahalli has vaccinated the entire population with at least one dose. The Kaval Byrasandra ward has the least vaccine coverage with just 8% of the target population getting the jab.
Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) officials attributed the low vaccination in certain areas to prevailing hesitancy. “There are also cases where people infected with Covid still are not eligible to get the vaccination,” said BBMP Special Commissioner (Health) D Randeep.
Some citizens who refused to disclose their vaccination status have also been documented as ‘not vaccinated’.
The civic body is, however, working on micro plans in areas where the coverage is poor. “More awareness programmes have been organised to discourage vaccine hesitancy. We’re also considering opening mini-vaccination centres specifically for a few streets with lower coverage,” a senior official said.
Irregular vaccine supply has also dented the plans. The civic body is also considering mapping the vaccine coverage with the infection rate. “It might be possible that these areas are at a higher risk of infection. We’re trying to draw some conclusions by mapping vaccine coverage with the infection rate,” the official said.
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