Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan yesterday (7 March) said that we are in the "end game" of the COVID-19 pandemic in India and pushed for politics to be kept out of the nationwide vaccination drive to succeed against the menace, reports Economic Times.

Dr Vardhan called on the people to trust the science behind the vaccines and to ensure that their near and dear ones get vaccinated on time. He also shared that the daily vaccination rate has been increased to 15 lakh per day and that over two crore vaccine shots have been administered so far.

Dr Vardhan also emphasised, "Unlike most other countries, we have a steady supply of Covid-19 vaccines that are safe with proven immunogenicity and efficacy. Based on the initial results, these Made in India vaccines have shown some of the lowest adverse events following immunization (AEFI) anywhere in the world."

Also highlighting that children in the entire world need to be vaccinated against poliomyelitis only because Pakistan and Afghanistan failed to eradicate this disease from their respective countries, Dr Vardhan said, "Similarly, India cannot be safe from coronavirus and Covid-19 if rest of the world continues to be unsafe, which is why it is essential to curb Covid-19 vaccine nationalism."

Pushing for a fair and equitable distribution of the vaccine as "the biggest need of the hour", Dr Vardhan underscored that if poor and underdeveloped nations continue to harbour the virus, then we shall not be able to ensure safety for all.

Dr Vardhan also added, "It was Modi ji's insistence that Covid-19 vaccines should be provided with no strings attached, and the countries without the vaccine supply should not be taken advantage of at the time of a global humanitarian crisis.