Over 33% of target beneficiaries inoculated so far; vaccination centres to remain operational through May, says Health Minister Satyakumar Yadav

AMARAVATI : The Central government has dispatched an additional 1,90,890 doses of the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to Andhra Pradesh, reinforcing the state's ongoing drive to protect adolescent girls against cervical cancer, Health and Medical Minister Satyakumar Yadav announced on Monday.

The fresh consignment follows an earlier batch of 1,90,800 doses supplied last month under the first instalment of the Central government's HPV vaccination initiative, taking the total doses received by the state to 3,81,780. The vaccine is being administered to girls in the 14 to 15 age group as part of a targeted public health intervention aimed at preventing cervical cancer.

Mr. Yadav said authorities were taking steps to distribute the newly arrived doses to districts in proportion to the number of eligible girls in each area. He confirmed that vaccination centres across the state would continue to function without interruption through May, and added that the completion of Class X public examinations was expected to further accelerate the pace of inoculation as school-going girls became more accessible.

Over One Lakh Girls Vaccinated So Far

According to data compiled from village and ward secretariats, there are approximately 3.45 lakh girls in the state who have completed 14 years of age but have not yet turned 15 — the designated target group for the current phase of the drive. Of these, 1,14,512 girls, representing 33.19 per cent of the total, had received the vaccine by Monday afternoon.

Among the districts, Kurnool recorded the highest number of beneficiaries at 6,785, followed closely by Nellore at 6,726, YSR district at 6,725, and Anantapur at 6,655. At the other end of the spectrum, Polavaram district reported the lowest coverage with 669 girls vaccinated, followed by Alluri Sitarama Raju district at 1,063, Sri Sathya Sai at 2,769, and Anakapalli at 2,959.

Cold Chain Infrastructure and Safety Protocols

The vaccine is being administered at 1,645 primary and urban health centres across the state that have been identified as having adequate cold chain storage facilities. Health officials said girls were being observed for 30 minutes after receiving the shot as a standard precautionary measure, and that no adverse reaction cases had been reported thus far.

In keeping with Central government directives, 500 doses from the first consignment were separately dispatched to Yanam. Officials noted that Andhra Pradesh was among the states in the forefront of implementing the Central guidelines on HPV vaccination, describing the initiative as a critical step towards reducing the burden of cervical cancer.

Mr. Yadav reiterated that the HPV vaccine was both safe and effective and urged parents to ensure that eligible girls in the target age group availed themselves of the free vaccination at the nearest health centre before the current drive concluded.