Jharkhand will vaccinate truck drivers, helpers and labourers engaged in transportation of goods between India and Bangladesh by road on priority following a directive from the Ministry of External Affairs, officials said on Saturday.

“In adherence to a directive from the Ministry of External Affairs, we will start vaccination of truck drivers and other individuals involved in transportation of goods to Bangladesh via road,” said Dr Siddharth Tripathi, the nodal officer of health department’s Information, Education and Communication (IEC) wing.

Truck drivers, Tripathi said, will be provided certificates post vaccination, which they can carry while transporting goods from India to Bangladesh.

As per a letter from the Ministry of External Affairs, the Bangladesh government has already started vaccinating truck drivers who move to India for transporting goods and has sought similar initiatives from the government of India.

Even though Jharkhand does not share its borders with Bangladesh, several truck drivers from the state are involved in transportation of goods to the neighbouring country, government sources said.

The National Health Mission (NHM) has also directed all districts to ensure vaccination of sportspersons, team members and other staff participating in the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympic games at the earliest. The Tokyo Olympics is scheduled to begin on July 23, and sportspersons from Jharkhand have made it to the national hockey team that would be participating in the Olympics.

Besides vaccinating residents who travel overseas, the state government has started preparing for a possible third wave of Covid-19. The state will conduct gap assessment of private hospitals with paediatrics facilities in order to identify infrastructural shortcomings of the healthcare setups and provide oxygen concentrators on rent to the hospitals for tackling a possible third wave of Covid-19, officials said on Saturday.

In a letter addressed to civil surgeons of all 24 districts of Jharkhand, the NHM stated that all district administrations must hold meetings with the representatives of private hospitals within their jurisdiction and start the process of assessing the preparedness of private healthcare facilities in the eventuality of a third wave of the pandemic.

The districts will have to prepare a detailed report on the number of hospitals providing paediatrics facilities, whether they have separate Covid wards or not and whether the hospitals have dedicated Paediatrics Intensive Care Units (PICUs). During the assessment, districts will also have to review availability of beds and oxygen concentrators in private hospitals, officials said.

“The state has decided to provide oxygen concentrators on rent to private healthcare facilities that have a paediatrics ward in case there is a demand during a possible third wave,” said Dr Tripathi.