Centre to prioritise Covid-19 vaccination for seafarers

Centre on Sunday said it will prioritise Covid-19 vaccination for seafarers.

Union Shipping Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, in a statement, said the seafaring industry should not get hampered due to non-vaccination and emphasised that all efforts should be made to get seafarers vaccinated before joining their scheduled duties on board

Due to the recent intervention by the ministry, major ports have started vaccination centres, the statement said.

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The Ministry has been making efforts to take state governments on board for including seafarers in their state ''priority'' list, and Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Goa have already provided such status. The government will leave no stone unturned to facilitate seafarers for vaccination, the statement added.

Six major ports which include Mumbai Port Trust, Cochin Port Trust, Chennai Port Trust, Visakhapatnam Port Trust, Kolkata Port Trust and Tuticorin Port Trust have started vaccinating seafarers at their port hospital, it added.