CM Ashok Gehlot took the first dose of the vaccine

Gehlot along with public health minister Raghu Sharma, was given the first dose of the vaccine at Sawai Man Singh Hospital in Jaipur.

Rajasthan's chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Friday urged people to be vaccinated against coronavirus and to adhere to Covid-19 guidelines as he noted that many provinces were seeing an increase in the number of cases. Gehlot's comments came after he, along with public health minister Raghu Sharma, was given the first dose of the vaccine at Sawai Man Singh Hospital in Jaipur.

“I would like to send a message to the public that today Covid-19 cases are on the rise in provinces such as Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Maharashtra, and Kerala. Lockdown is set in some of these areas. To ensure that Rajasthan does not lose the battle, it is important that without being vaccinated, we should not be negligent in complying with all such agreements such as wearing masks, hand washing, social media,” Gehlot told reporters.

Gehlot also issued a warning, saying the chances of survival were slim for people hospitalized after not following proper procedures. “If you experience symptoms, do not hesitate. Free medical care is provided in hospitals. Get treatment,” he added.

Praising the government's vaccination campaign, the chief minister said 200,000-250,000 people were vaccinated daily, adding that about 25 percent of the total inoculations in India occurred in Rajasthan. He also said the vaccine is safe and urged all beneficiaries to be vaccinated where it was their turn and to encourage others to do the same.

Rajasthan has given vaccination doses to 1,609,343 people so far, according to the union's Department of Health, An estimated 1,326,074 people received the first dose so far and the remaining 283,269 were given a second dose of vaccine.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan's Covid-19 cases numbered 321,000 in which 2,788 died and 316 631 recovered from the disease. Active cases exceed the mark of 1,500. On Wednesday, 215 new cases were added while no deaths were reported in the province. It was the third time in a row that there were no new deaths due to the disease. On January 8, the state reported for the first time the deaths in nine months.