New Delhi: The Union Health Ministry has reduced the time gap between the second Covid dose and the precaution shot to six months from the previous nine months.
The National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (NTAGI) took the decision in view of the “evolving scientific evidence and global practices”.
The precaution dose for those between 18 and 59 years would be administered after six months or 26 weeks from the second dose.
The same would apply to those above 60 as well as health-care and frontline workers – who would get it free of charge at government vaccination centres.
India on Wednesday registered 16,159 fresh Covid cases, 15,394 recoveries and 28 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Health ministry data shows active cases are now at 1,15,212.
Maharashtra leads the country’s Covid figures with 3,098 cases reported Tuesday and six deaths. Though the infection rate has gone down in Mumbai, other districts like Thane and Raigad have shown an uptick.
Delhi recorded 615 fresh cases with a positivity rate of 3.89 per cent. There were three fatalities Tuesday.
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