Sambhal (UP), Jan 3 (PTI) Traders in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal district have demanded that they be given COVID-19 vaccine shots on a priority basis.

The demand was raised at the meeting of the Federation of All India Vyapar Mandal held here on Sunday.

By clapping and clanging utensils, district president of the traders' body, Rajiv Varshney, along with other traders expressed their gratitude to the scientists who developed the vaccine.

Varshney appealed to the prime minister to administer the dose of COVID-19 vaccine to traders on a priority basis as they "risked their lives during the COVID-19 pandemic while making the essential commodities available to the public".

India's drugs regulator on Sunday approved Oxford COVID-19 vaccine Covishield, manufactured by the Serum Institute, and indigenously developed Covaxin of Bharat Biotech for restricted emergency use in the country, paving the way for a massive inoculation drive.

(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)