admin
India’s Covid vaccination rollout has continued to falter due to supply shortages and vaccine hesitancy, casting doubt on the government’s pledge to vaccinate the entire population by December.
A number of states, including the capital, Delhi, said they had run out of vaccine stocks this week while others including Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra said vaccine supplies were running critically low in many areas, particularly for those aged between 18 and 45.
Manish Sisodia, the deputy chief minister of Delhi, tweeted that “vaccines have run out in Delhi again. The central government gives vaccines for a day or two, then we have to keep the vaccine centres closed for several days.”
The central government has disputed the claims of shortages and said all states were informed weeks in advance how many vaccines would be sent to them each month.
Vaccinating India, the second most populous country in the world with more than 1.3 billion citizens, is a gargantuan task. However, nationwide figures show that the country is nowhere near hitting the daily target needed to have the whole adult population vaccinated by the end of 2021, as was promised in May by a government minister, Prakash Javadekar.
Only 5% of the population is fully vaccinated, while about 20% have had one dose.- THE GUARDIAN.
Online Reporter