Shimla: In the wake of the re-emergence of coronavirus in China, the Health and Family Welfare Department of Shimla district has made the booster dose available in two hospitals of the town from December 23 to 28 as a precautionary measure.

The dose will be available in Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, Shimla and in Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, Shimla and will be administered free of cost between 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Shimla Dr Surekha Chopda said that those who were not able to get the booster dose before can now get themselves vaccinated in these hospitals as soon as possible.

At present, there are as many as 24 active cases in the state. Recently, newly elected Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu also tested positive for coronavirus while he was on tour.

China, where the pandemic first broke out in late 2019 is once again witnessing a surge in COVID-19 cases. This has made the central and state government to take necessary precautionary measures to avoid another wave of the pandemic.