Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar on Wednesday said that she hoped celebrities like Salman Khan will help raise awareness among Muslims to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
"Whenever vaccination happened there were religious apprehensions in Muslims, which delayed it slightly. Hoping that Muslims will take jabs and actors like Salman Khan should encourage them," said Mumbai Mayor.
Her comments came after reports of the Maharashtra Government trying to get Salman Khan onboard to convince people who are vaccine-hesitant to take the jab.
On Tuesday, Maharashtra Public Health Minister Rajesh Tope has said there was hesitancy about taking anti-coronavirus vaccines in Muslim-dominated areas.
?"There is still some hesitancy in Muslim-dominated areas. We have decided to use Salman Khan and religious leaders to convince the Muslim community to take the vaccine," he said. ¡°Religious leaders and film actors wield great influence and people listen to them," he added.?
As many as 10,41,16,963 COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in Maharashtra, wherein 6,98,15,228 people were administered the first dose of the vaccine, as per the data of the Union Health Ministry.
Over 10.25 crore vaccine doses have been administered in the state so far, and by the end of November all eligible persons will have received at least the first dose, the minister said. About the possibility of a third wave of the viral infection, Tope said as per the experts, the pandemic has a seven-month cycle, but due to large-scale vaccination, the next wave would not be severe.?
BJP leader Ram Kadam on Wednesday raised objection against the Maharashtra government's plan and said that it is a "polarisation stunt" of the state government to attract a specific community.
"Is the MVA and Congress bringing Salman Khan for polarising people as there are elections in several states?" Kadam questioned.
"Although people across the country took part in the massive COVID-19 vaccination drive and most of them have been vaccinated and cooperated well, so is it a polarisation stunt by MVA and its partner Congress to polarise people and attract a specific community," he reiterated.
Further, the BJP leader cleared that the party particularly does not have a problem with Salman Khan, "but the way in which he is being brought, raises questions."
Meanwhile, the number of fully vaccinated individuals against COVID-19 has surpassed the partially vaccinated eligible population for the first time in the country.
This feat has been made possible due to the prime minister's vision of 'Jan-Bhagidari' and ¡°Whole of Government Approach¡±, people's faith and confidence in the government, and the ongoing 'Har Ghar Dastak' campaign which has seen a tremendous response from various parts of the country, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Wednesday.
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