Conspiracy theories slow down vaccination drive | Economic Times

Mumbai | New Delhi: India’s Covid-19 vaccination drive has yet to pick up pace as misinformation and scepticism regarding vaccines creeping in on social media platforms and elsewhere, besides technical glitches, create bumps in the way.While Facebook has banned anti-vaccine groups, other platforms such as Twitter and WhatsApp are fuelling vaccine rumours and fear mongering. One of the bizarre conspiracy theories doing the rounds is that billionaire Bill Gates is funding some vaccine manufacturers because he wants to reduce population growth!The government’s decision to fast track approval of domestic vaccine maker Bharat Biotech’s vaccine without efficacy data has also added fuel to scepticism, experts told ET. “Most of us are facing the vaccine dilemma, whether to get it or not,” a government official said on condition of anonymity. “Many are in fact looking to wait and watch.” In Mumbai, which was expecting to vaccinate 4,000 healthcare and frontline workers on the first day of vaccination on Saturday, saw a turnout of half of this number. 80321224While authorities have blamed this on the technical glitch of the CoWIN app, many healthcare workers across the country said they want some questions answered before they agree to be among the first to roll up their sleeves. “We want to see what kind of adverse reactions are being experienced before we go ahead for the vaccination,” a resident doctor at a government hospital told ET on condition of anonymity. Resident Doctor Association of Ram Manohar Lohia hospital in Delhi in a letter said, “We would like to bring to your notice that the residents are a bit apprehensive about the lack of complete trial in case of Covaxin and might not participate in huge numbers, thus defeating the purpose of vaccination.” The hesitancy among some healthcare workers about getting vaccinated has come as a surprise given the risk they’re facing and their important role in preventing spread of the virus. The government as well as several individuals and organisations are trying to dispel any misgivings about safety of the vaccines.“Both vaccinations developed in India are completely safe,” home minister Amit Shah said at a political rally in Karnataka on Sunday where he urged people to get vaccinated when their turn comes. Several doctors who got vaccinated on the first day took to the social media to support the vaccination drive. “Smooth & painless. Honoured to be vaccinated against Covid-19,” Arvinder Soin of Medanta Medicity hospital tweeted after he got the shot. The Union health ministry has devised an 88-page communication strategy to dispel myths about vaccination. The ministry plans to identify traditionally known vaccine-hesitant and resistant areas/groups/communities based on prior experience and orient credible influencers from local communities to build their trust and acceptance. It has also proposed real-time monitoring of digital media to facilitate appropriate and timely action to address hesitancy among people, and involving influencers and medical professionals to write articles in support of vaccination.