Tamil Nadu is lagging behind in the vaccine race and is among the bottom five states in terms of vaccinating its population against Covid-19, according to heath authorities. So far the state has vaccinated only nine percent of its 7 crore population with the first dose of the vaccine. This has put the state right at the bottom of the list of states with low vaccination percentage along with UP, Assam, Bihar and Jharkhand.

Tamil Nadu now ranks much below states like Gujarat which, with a comparable population, has vaccinated 20.5% of its population with a single dose and Kerala which has achieved 22.4% coverage.

Health authorities attributed the poor show to the initial vaccine hesitancy in the state and said that things are better now. A patient from Chennai, who was part of the vaccine trial, had alleged adverse impact and popular comedian Vivek died a few days after taking his first dose.

Between January and February, Tamil Nadu could administer only 4.57 lakh doses but the rate of vaccination rose by more than 5 times in March, crossing 28 lakh doses that month and nearly seven times in May, crossing 30 lakh doses, authorities said.

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