BAREILLY: In several UP villages where the fear of vaccines is far greater than the Covid-19 itself, the health department teams are finding it tough to motivate locals to take the shots. The health workers on the inoculation drive have heard scores of rumours, some of them strange -- like vaccines will sterilize men or people will die after two years of taking the jabs. 

Instead of information on the benefits of the vaccines and the dangers of ducking it, gossip and fake news have flooded the social media space. In Barabanki district, scores of people jumped into the Saryu river to evade the vaccine. While in Etawah, an elderly woman was found hiding behind a storage drum inside her house when a health department team came to visit. Earlier this week, in Mathura’s Nayi Basti, with a population of about 15,000, health officials could convince only 20 to get the jab. Rumours of “vaccine death” have kept most villagers in Bareilly away from vaccination centres too. In some areas, elderlies have fled to other villages to escape the shots. And some villages are collectively boycotting the drive.

Bareilly`s district immunization officer Dr RN Singh told TOI, “People in rural areas are staying away from the jab. They are scared because of social media rumours. Countering the rumours with awareness is necessary. Health teams are holding frequent meetings with village heads and locals to allay their fears.” To curb the misinformation and tackle the vaccine hesitancy, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) had released ‘Covid-19 Vaccine Communication Strategy’. Released in January, the document was to serve as a guide for national, state and district level authorities to fight vaccine hesitancy. But little has been done at the ground to check the rumour mongering.
 

Recently, a health department team was sent back by the residents of Dagroli village in Faridpur block of Bareilly. The video of the residents refusing to come forward for the vaccination was widely shared on social media on Friday.  In Shahjahanpur, people from rural areas of Kalaan and Mirzapur block have also not shown interest in the vaccination. 

Shahjahanpur DIO Dr Laxman Singh told TOI, “We are able to vaccinate nearly 4,500 people against the target of 7,000 every day. All the slots for vaccination in urban areas are full but vaccination in rural areas where people are not much educated is still a challenge for us. Like the polio vaccination programme, if celebrities come up with positive campaigning then I am sure that people will show more interest in vaccination.” 

The hesitancy was also prevalent in minority dominated areas. Union minister of minority affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi was in Rampur district to oversee the vaccination programme and spread awareness amongst the masses towards vaccination. While speaking with the media persons, he said, “Those who are spreading misinformation about the vaccine are enemies of the people as well as the nation. Vaccination is the only way to control Covid-19. Unfortunately, a few people instead of becoming a part of this collective battle against Covid-19, are trying to create panic among people regarding the vaccine for setting their political agenda.” 

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