The Bihar government launched a programme on Monday aiming to vaccinate six crore people in six months in a bid to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic. The scheme will become fully operational from July 1.

“We are launching a plan to vaccinate six crore people in six months. Vaccination does not mean giving a single dose. It means giving both doses to the people.

“Vaccinating six crore people in six months is not a small task. We have started today and we have to achieve the aim in any condition,” chief minister Nitish Kumar said after inaugurating the programme.

Bihar has a population of over 12 crore, but the pace of vaccination has been very slow. Of late, the drive has been facing resistance from people in the rural areas. Around 89 per cent of the population in the state resides in villages.

The latest figures provided by the government reveals that 1.16 crore people in the state have received the first shot of Covid-19 vaccine, while 22.05 lakh have taken both the doses so far.

“Experts are talking about the arrival of a third wave of the coronavirus pandemic. Some say it will come in six to eight weeks, some say it will arrive in November or earlier. We need to take vaccines and be ready to face it, even if it comes. I pray with folded hands to the people to be alert and ready. The government, on its part, is doing everything possible,” Nitish said.

He also said that all efforts are being made to ensure that people who have taken the first dose, also take the second one. He directed the senior officials to publicise the need for taking both doses.

Nitish asserted that he has asked the officials to conduct 1.5 lakh Covid-19 tests daily, but the figure has gone up to a maximum of 1.4 lakh.

Pointing out how so many people suddenly fell ill during the second wave of the pandemic and there was a shortage of oxygen across the country unlike the first wave, the chief minister thanked the Centre and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for providing vaccines, as well as alerting about the future possibilities.

Education minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary, health minister Mangal Pandey and senior officials were present at the launch.

“We will take the help of boat ambulances, mobile hospitals, ANM (auxiliary nurse midwife) sisters and all other facilities to achieve our aim of vaccinating six crore people in six months.

“Altogether 839 ‘tika express’ (a mobile van which carries healthcare workers to far-flung areas to administer vaccines) are already functioning across the state,” Pandey said.

Meanwhile, Nitish also chaired a meeting of the crisis management group and decided to further relax the restrictions imposed in the wake of the pandemic. Parks and gardens across the state have been allowed to open from 6am to noon from Tuesday. They were closed in April when Covid-19 infections shot up.

Government and private offices can also function with 100 per cent attendance from Tuesday instead of 50 per cent allowed so far. Shops and business establishments can now open till 7pm instead of 6pm, while night curfew will be begin from 9pm instead of 7pm and continue till 5am.

According to government data, Bihar has registered 7.2 crore Covid-19 infections and 9,550 deaths. There are presently 3,188 active cases in the state. The positivity rate has now dropped to 0.3 per cent while the recovery rate stands at 98.23 per cent.