Covid vaccination for 'at-risk' children next month, says Dr NK Arora

Amid growing concerns over the new Omicron variant of coronavirus, India's Covid Task Force chief has said that vaccination for children with comorbidities will begin as soon as next month.

Dr NK Arora also added that vaccine rollout for healthy children is likely to begin in the first quarter of next year.

In an interview with NDTV, Dr Arora said Like the vaccination in adults, a "prioritisation process is in place" for the country's 44 crore children, and a list of comorbidities is being prepared.

He added that there is also an effort to reduce the number of doses of ZyCoV-D - the Zydus-Cadilla vaccine from three to two doses.

Also watch | Symptoms unfamiliar but mild: doctor who detected Omicron variant

The government has cleared the Zydus vaccine for children. Bharat Biotech and Serum Institute of India have also finished the paediatric trials of their vaccines.

Vaccines for children are a big concern for parents as schools have also opened after a long spell of online classes.