The Salem division of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) is aiming to provide COVID-19 booster dose vaccination to all its eligible employees to ensure the safety of passengers.
The division comprises the districts of Salem, Namakkal, Dharmapuri, Krishnagiri and Tirupathur. TNSTC has 14 branches (depots) in Salem district, four in Namakkal district, six each in Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts and one branch in Tirupathur district.
The total workforce of the division is 11,829, which includes 2,351 in Dharmapuri, 2,401 in Krishnagiri and 389 in Tirupathur districts.
“As bus drivers and operators are dealing with the public on a daily basis, we are prioritizing them to vaccinate in the division. Out of the total 11,829 employees, 4,954 employees are below 45 years of age and 6,875 are above 45 years of age. It has 4,879 employees (98.49%) under 45 years of age in the fully immunized (dual dose) and 6,771 (98.49%) employees in the above age group. 45 have been fully vaccinated. The remaining 1.51% employees cannot be vaccinated due to medical complications,” said a senior official attached to the division.
After the state and central governments insisted on giving booster doses, TNSTC directed its employees to get vaccinated without delay. Till August 2, 5,527 employees in Salem division are eligible for booster dose. In this, 1,267 employees (22.92%) were given booster doses, officials said.
Managing Director R. Ponmudi said that once in every 15 days we are conducting vaccination camps. Within a month, the remaining 77.08% of the eligible employees will be vaccinated.