69% adults have got at least 1 jab, 25% fully vaxxed: Govt

New Delhi: As many as 31 states and UTs have covered more than 60% of their adult population above 18 with at least one dose of Covid vaccines and 25% of this cohort has received the full two doses.

Overall, 69% of the total adult population of the country has received at least one dose of vaccine. As a share of the entire population, the coverage works out to 46% and India has administered 889 million shots. India's shots per 100 population has risen to a respectable 63, with the world average at 79.4.

The increase in inoculation comes even as the number of districts with more than 5% positivity has dropped to 48 during the week ending September 29, as against 60-66 districts till last week, health secretary Rajesh Bhushan said.

Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, despite administering a significant number of doses, are among seven states with below 60% coverage. Other states with less than 60% coverage are Jharkhand, West Bengal, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Manipur. The large population of the heartland states might in part explain lower coverage.

Six states and UTs have achieved 100% coverage of their respective adult population with the first dose of vaccines. This are Lakshadweep, Chandigarh, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Sikkim.

The pick-up in vaccination can be seen with 10 states having inoculated more than 80% of the adult population with at least one dose, whereas the coverage of the first dose ranges between 60% and 80% in 15 states. At present, the daily monthly average for vaccination is close to 80 lakh.