Har Ghar Dastak Abhiyan
A big step towards Arunachal’s fight against Covid-19
By crossing 100 crore vaccinations in the country, India has stepped on a significant milestone in the fight against COVID-19. This was possible due the active participation of each state in the National Vaccination Drive. Arunachal Pradesh too, have left no stone unturned in its endeavour to achieve higher vaccination rates in the state. But the war against COVID-19 is not an easy win, especially when the goal is to protect 139 crore people in India.
This called for the implementation of ‘Har Ghar Dastak Abhiyan’ by GoI, where vaccination is provided by the healthcare workers, going door-to-door, and increasing the rate of vaccinated people in districts with low coverage. Following its launch, state Government of Arunachal Pradesh has implemented the same and the Abhiyan is in full swing by now.
The Necessity
There wouldn’t have been a celebration of achieving 100 crore vaccinations, had it not been for the earnest effort put in by the officials and healthcare workers to carry on the drive in each state.
Arunachal being remotely located with huge geographical disparities, the vaccination drive in the state required additional boost to ensure full-vaccination coverage like other states. It was also equally important to impart education and necessary guidelines to the scattered population of the state. The communication gap always existed which needed to be eradicated by an approach that had no room for laxity.
The Challenges
Although the Har Ghar Dastak Campaign has been on a full swing, it is not always a smooth sail. The geographical disparities and the weather behaviour play an important role in traveling here. Many a times healthcare workers have to climb difficult places with high elevation and sometimes cross turbulent rivers on hanging bridges made with bamboo. Risking their lives, the healthcare workers have been carrying out the initiative in the remote villages of the state.
Another major challenge faced is the hesitancy of people in getting vaccinated. The fear among people is due to the infamous practice of forwarding fake messages and rumours via social media platforms without credible fact-checking.
A promising outlook
The task of convincing and providing counselling takes time and effort. The medical teams, community leaders, ASHA workers etc. have been resorting to different tactics to impart awareness on the campaign to the local dwellers. Thanks to their sincere endeavour, despite taking time, the abhiyan has achieved success in registering a relatively higher vaccination rate.
Following the PM led Har Ghar Dastak Abhiyan, Arunachal Pradesh have recorded a significant rise in voluntary participation from the NGOs, SHGs, multiple departments, students etc., who have come forward to promulgate the cause of the campaign to the common masses. Reaching out to the unreached and spreading awareness about the need to vaccinated for protection against the virus, is being done on a daily basis.
At the given pace of contribution from the authorities along with the voluntary participation towards sensitizing the public about the vaccination drive, Arunachal Pradesh is anticipated to get fully vaccinated soon.
It is important to note that without complete participation from the public, the road towards a fully vaccinated nation will only get longer and the fight against COVID-19 will continue to cost the lives of our loved ones. If you know someone who isn’t vaccinated yet, become a voice of the campaign and urge them to get the jab at the nearest vaccination centre and join the fight against COVID-19.
