General vaccine trends in India 8

Vaccine Tracker: India began the second phase of vaccination against the novel coronavirus on 1 March. According to the health ministry, 1,72,27,903 people have been 1st dose vaccination against coronavirus while total doses stand at 2,09,89,010 as of March 8, 2021

1. Common Misinformation:

• A recent WhatsApp message presented a series of arguments discrediting the claimed 95% efficacy of Pfizer vaccine. The message is partly correct, but it is misleading people by claiming that the clinical trial was conducted on a selected group of participants aimed for optimal results

• A video titled ‘Finally got ALL the answers about this health crisis has been going viral on social media questioning the efficacy and needs of the vaccines in the ongoing pandemic

• An image with the quote ‘No alcohol for 45 days’ after vaccination is doing rounds on social media and widely shared on closed groups

2. Over performing/common trends in the last week:

• CrowdTangle Insights from the previous week- The post on man fainted in an observation room around 15 minutes after taking the second dose has overperformed by 45.71 times. However, the causes are still unclear

• The video of His Holiness, the Dalai Lama Receives COVID-19 Vaccine has overperformed by 44.42 times

• The post to remove PM Photo From Vaccine Certificates, Election Commission Tells Centre has overperformed by 79.06 times