Daily Times

The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Saturday announced the inclusion of citizens belonging to age groups of 15 to 18 years for maximum vaccination of the public in existing national drive to inoculate the masses with Covid-19 vaccine.

The forum decided that only Pfizer vaccine would be given free to citizens between the ages of 15 and 18 years. The forum informed that for registration purpose, children’s registration certificate (Form B number) would be required.

However, vaccination certificate could only be obtained under the existing system, it added. “Pfizer vaccine will be available for 15 to 18-year old at all Mass Vaccination Centers,” the Forum said.

It further informed that mobile vaccination teams will also visit to schools and colleges for vaccinating students aged 15-18 years.

Earlier in the day, the NCOC announced that those awaiting their second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine may visit a vaccination centre on any day of the week. The NCOC maintained that citizens do not have to wait for a message from the authority to proceed with a second dose, Radio Pakistan reported.

Last week, the authority had announced that partially vaccinated individuals could get their scheduled second jabs without waiting for the SMS message. The government has stepped up the nationwide vaccination campaign as the country battles the fourth wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, fuelled by the Indian-origin Delta variant of coronavirus.

As per the statistics released by the NCOC through its website, Pakistan reported 3,480 new cases of coronavirus during the past 24 hours, taking the tally for confirmed cases to 1,201,367. At least 82 fatalities were also reported during the period. A total of 26,662 patients have succumbed to the virus in the country so far. Moreover, 3,121 recoveries were also reported in a day, taking the total recoveries to 1,082,988.