BBMP starts vaccinating people from unorganised sectors

The Palike has identified people working in nearly 30 sectors for vaccination

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on Tuesday vaccinated over 250 construction workers, kicking off the drive to inoculate people from the unorganised sector in line with the state government’s initiative.

The construction workers were vaccinated at Dasappa Hospital. “Following the state government’s directives, we’re vaccinating frontline workers in the 18-44 age group,” BBMP’s Chief Commissioner Gaurav Gupta said.

“Accordingly, we’re vaccinating auto drivers, Bescom staff, crematorium workers and many others.”

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The Palike has identified people working in nearly 30 sectors, including garment workers, auto and taxi drivers, petrol pump operators and street vendors, who should be vaccinated on priority.

“Our officers are working to enlist people in all eligible sectors,” the BBMP’s Chief Health Officer Dr B K Vijendra said, adding that the civic body intends to vaccinate those most likely to come in contact with more people.

Weeklong vaccination

Asked about the plan, the BBMP’s nodal officer for vaccination and testing Dr Vaishnavi Kuppuswamy said people from all sectors would be vaccinated throughout the week by focusing on one sector a day. The team is planning to vaccinate people with disability on Wednesday, auto drivers on Thursday and street vendors on Friday. They also have plans to vaccinate slum dwellers by setting up vaccination camps near the city slums.

“We’ve been working meticulously alongside various other departments in data collection,” Dr Kuppuswamy said. “In the case of construction workers, we’ve been in touch with the Labour Department, the Confederation of Real-Estate Developers’ Associations of India (CREDAI) and many such organisations. Over 3,000 workers are on the list for vaccination.”

Data is also being collected from the Disability Welfare Board and the BBMP.