Bhopal, Aug 25 (PTI) Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday set a new record for itself by vaccinating over 22 lakh people against COVID-19 in a single day on the first day of its two-day mega inoculation drive, officials said.

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More than 22.26 lakh people were vaccinated till 8 pm on Wednesday, an official said.

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This figure may go up by late night.

In a tweet, the Madhya Pradesh health department said the state has now broken its own previous one-day vaccination record.

On June 21, vaccine jabs were given to as many as 17.62 lakh people, it said.

In the morning, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan inaugurated this campaign in a camp organised at a Jain temple in Bhopal.

He welcomed the people who came there for vaccination. He also put a stamp with 'I am Vaccinated' message on the hands of some individuals after they were given the jabs.

"COVID-19 cases are increasing in countries like the United States and Britain. Similar situation prevailed in Kerala. We cannot bear the suffering of a pandemic surge again. Therefore, protection is necessary," he said.

The state government's target was to administer the first dose of the jab to all the eligible people of the state by September 21 and the second dose by December 21, the CM added.

Chouhan also visited Bhopal's Katju Hospital, where a camp was organised for the specially-abled persons.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)