Vax not mandatory to visit public places

It is no longer mandatory to be vaccinated to visit public places after the State government on Sunday withdrew the notification that was issued last November.

In the notification dated November 18, 2021, issued under the Tamil Nadu Public Health Act, the government had mandated that people should carry vaccination certificates if they visit public places, including markets, theatres, playgrounds, hotel, etc.

The instructions issued to Deputy Directors of Health Services (DDHS) on Sunday noted the significant reduction of COVID-19 cases in the State and also the vaccination coverage (92 per cent population received the first dose and 75 per cent got both the doses) for those aged above 18.

However, the Director of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Dr TS Selvavinayagam, instructed all the DDHS in the districts, City Health Officer of Greater Chennai Corporation and the corresponding public health authorities in the other local bodies to ensure that people were encouraged to follow COVID-appropriate behaviour such as maintaining social distance, wearing masks, hand washing, avoiding crowd.

The officials were also asked to create awareness on the importance of vaccination and encourage more eligible persons to take vaccine doses without fail.