Chandigarh, Apr 8 (UNI) Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Thursday urged the Centre to give flexibility to states to devise their local strategies for Covid vaccination, within the broad parameters of the Centre’s approach, while seeking a review of the strategy to allow all adults in high-risk areas to be immunized, along with patients with liver and kidney disease below the age of 45.
The Chief Minister made these suggestions in a letter written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, immediately after the latter’s VC meeting with Chief Ministers of all states to review the Covid and vaccination situation. During the meeting, Capt Amarinder apprised the Prime Minister of the situation in the state, and also the steps taken by his government to control and manage the disease.
During the meeting in which Union Home Minister Amit Shah was also present, the Chief Minister assured the Centre of all-out efforts by his government to contain and manage Covid. He stressed on the fact that the UK variant which is dominating the second wave in the state, is reported by experts to be more virulent and affecting the youth disproportionately.
In his subsequent letter, Capt Amarinder said his suggestions, some of which had been earlier submitted on March 17 to the Prime Minister, the Union Minister and the Union Health Minister, were based on the state government’s interaction with independent experts.
Amid reports of some states facing vaccine shortages, he also requested the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to share the schedule for supply of vaccines with the States over the next quarter, based on their confirmed supply orders.
Given that over 80 per cent positive cases found in Punjab are of the UK variant, as per early reports from central laboratories, the Chief Minister also sought strengthening of viral sequencing in the state, which has been reporting around 3000 cases per day since the last 15 days, with around 8 per cent positivity. The state currently has around 26,000 active cases with recovery rate of 87.3 per cent, with death a matter of concern at 50-60 deaths a day and around 2 per cent Case Fatality Rate (CFR) in the second surge, which struck the state in the latter half of February this year.
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