Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday emphasised the need to educate people on the importance of COVID-19 vaccination and urged all stakeholders to work collectively to achieve the target of full vaccination by year-end.
The Vice President made these remarks on the occasion of Doctors' Day during a book presentation to him by the well-known nephrologist, Dr Georgi Abraham in Chennai today.
The book titled as "MY PATIENTS MY GOD- JOURNEY OF A KIDNEY DOCTOR" chronicles the professional journey of Dr Abraham as a doctor, educationist and researcher over the past four decades.
On the occasion, the Vice President underlined the need to address vaccine hesitancy in some sections of the population, especially in rural areas.
"There is a need to dispel fears in some sections and the vaccination drive should turn into a truly pan-India 'Jan Andolan'," he said while urging the medical fraternity to take a lead in creating awareness and educating the people on the importance of getting themselves vaccinated.
Stating that community support is critical in our fight against coronavirus, the Vice President said that those having vaccine hesitancy should be made aware of the fact that they are putting their own lives and those of their family members at avoidable risk.
Asking the Centre and States to work together in 'Team India' spirit to quicken the pace of the vaccine campaign, he appealed to civil society members and icons in various fields including film personalities, sportspersons and people's representatives cutting across party lines, to come forward and encourage people to go for vaccination.
Observing that rapid vaccination was the key to defeating the COVID-19 pandemic, he mentioned that India has already administered more than 32 crore doses, surpassing the total number of vaccinations done in the United States.
Mentioning the theme for this year's Doctors' Day - 'Save the Saviour', he stressed the need to ensure the safety and well-being of doctors who are rendering yeoman service during this unprecedented health emergency caused by COVID-19.
He also paid tributes to renowned doctor, educationist and freedom fighter, Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy whose birth anniversary is commemorated as Doctors' Day.
( With inputs from ANI )
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