Tribes residing in Maharashtra's Shahapur, Bhiwandi, Palghar, and Thane are unwilling to take the COVID-19 vaccine and to avoid the jab, people in the Gondia district are hiding in jungles.
There are a lot of misconceptions about the Covid vaccine amongst the tribal people, Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik said on the issue, adding that the state government is putting all efforts to vaccinate the tribal population.
BJP leader Ram Kadam demands investigation
Meanwhile, BJP leader Ram Kadam has accused the Maha Vikas Aghadi government of its inaction in educating the tribals about the vaccine. He has demanded an enquiry to discover the reasons behind vaccine hesitation and asked when the state government will take action against antisocial elements spreading such rumours about the vaccines.
The tribals believe that they will die after getting vaccinated, Kadam asked when will the Maha government take action against those anti-social elements spreading false rumours about the vaccine.
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Karnataka state in April too faced a similar challenge when tribals from Mysuru, Kodagu, and Chamarajanagar district refused to take the vaccine jab.
Afraid to take the vaccines
The tribals were afraid to take the vaccine as it was in the form of an injection, a local media agency reported.
In the United States, some Native American tribal members were also hesitant to get COVID-19 jab.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra reported 34,848 fresh COVID-19 cases, 59,073 discharges, and 960 deaths in the last 24 hours. The state has a total of 4,94,032 active cases, followed by 47,67,053 recoveries and a death toll of 80,512.
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The state has administered the covid vaccine to 3,41,887 people in a single day, taking the state's vaccination count to 1,95,31,051. Health minister Rajesh Tope has said that more doses for the state are expected from May 20, after which the vaccination drive can be increased.