Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has credited the Supreme Court for its intervention which prompted the Central government to change its vaccination policy.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, June 7, announced that the Central government will also provide free vaccines to states for people in the 18-44 age groups. Earlier, the Centre was providing free vaccines for only 45+ age groups while the states had to directly buy doses from manufacturers to inoculate their residents who fall in the 18-44 age categories.
Sisodia, while thanking the apex court, tweeted that the Modi government could have executed this policy change sooner, adding that neither states were able to buy vaccines, nor Centre provided the shots.
https://twitter.com/msisodia/status/1401877951394713608?s=19
The new policy of centralised vaccination program will come into effect from June 21, and till then states and Centre will prepare the necessary arrangements for the changes to take place, PM Modi said during his address to the nation.
The Central government had expanded the national vaccination program from May 1 when people in the 18-44 age groups became eligible for receiving doses. However, the Modi government had also announced that the state governments will be responsible for inoculating the young adults in their respective regions. Centre also said states can directly buy from manufacturers, or can even import the doses.
However, amid the vaccine shortage, Opposition ruled states like Delhi, Maharashtra and Punjab criticised the Modi government saying the Centre has left states to compete among themselves for procuring the vaccine. The differential pricing of vaccines by manufacturers also became an issue.
Central government was buying the Serum Institute of India’s Covishield for Rs 150 per dose, but the price to state governments was initially set at Rs 400, which was then reduced to Rs 300.
As far as the vaccination program is concerned, more than 23.27 crore doses have been administered so far, according to the data on CoWin website. Of these, over 4.52 crore people have been fully vaccinated, while around 18.75 crore people have taken their first shots.
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