COLOMBO, Aug 14 (NNN-XINHUA) – Sri Lankan authorities made it mandatory for citizens above the age of 30, to carry their vaccination cards when they visit public places from Sept 15, in a bid to curb the rising spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, Army Commander and Head of the National Operations Centre for Prevention of COVID-19, General Shavendra Silva, said here yesterday.
In a statement, Silva said, the vaccination cards, which should mention the dates of both jabs, should be shown to officials when citizens visit public places such as supermarkets, restaurants, parks, etc.
Sri Lanka is presently in the midst of a nationwide vaccination programme, with over 11 million first doses administered to those above 30 years of age.
Sri Lankan President, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, earlier instructed health officials to pay special attention to those aged over 60, and who were suffering from long-term non-communicable diseases during this pandemic, to ensure they have received the vaccines.
Last month he instructed health officials to complete administering the first dose of vaccines on all those above 30 years old by Sept, amidst a rapid spread of the virus suspected to be caused by the Delta variant.
To date, Sri Lanka has 34,870 active COVID-19 patients and reported 5,620 deaths.– NNN-XINHUA