Maharashtra asks Centre for minimum 30-35 lakh vaccine doses

The state of Maharashtra has asked the Centra government for a minimum of 30-35 lakh doses of the Covid-19 vaccine to meet the daily target of vaccinating as many as 4.5 lakh beneficiaries.

State immunisation officer Dr D N Patil said each district is performing well and hence, some are exhausting their stock in one or two days. “There is a shortage presently, and we have asked the Centre to supply a minimum stock of vaccines for at least a fortnight,” Dr Patil told The Indian Express.

“Going by the figure of 4.5 lakh vaccinations per day, we have asked for a minimum of 30-35 lakh doses. We have still not received a response from the Centre,” Dr Patil said.

Maharashtra recently crossed the milestone of 82 lakh vaccinations and was the highest among states with a daily record of over four lakh vaccinations. However, several districts have started running out of vaccine stock.

Health officials at Sangli district said they ran out of stock at 3 pm on Wednesday, while Satara district health officials said they would not be able to conduct vaccinations from Thursday.

Kolhapur is facing a similar situation, while Pune district can pull along with the drive for the next one-two days. Most health officials in the districts in the Pune region are upset as several efforts have been made to mobilise an otherwise hesitant population to get the vaccine shot.

Ayush Prasad, CEO of Pune Zilla Parishad said there is immense enthusiasm among field staff and keeping a buffer stock ready adds to the confidence levels among immunisation officers at the centres. “Presently we have a stock of 50,000 doses and have procured 20,000 additional doses, which are now being immediately distributed to centres,” Prasad said.

Dr Sanjay Deshmukh, Deputy Director of the Pune circle, which includes the Pune, Satara and Solapur districts, said that till date, a total of 15.85 lakh beneficiaries have been vaccinated, of which 11.36 lakh are from the Pune district. The remaining 2.56 lakh beneficiaries are from Satara, while 1.96 lakh beneficiaries are from Solapur district.

Dr Deshmukh admitted some districts may have to temporarily pause vaccinations till the stock is replenished. “Pune district has 526 Covid vaccination centres and presently a stock of 1.20 lakh doses is available. Other districts may however run out of stock in the next one or two days,” Dr Deshmukh said, adding that they were also waiting for directives from the state.