Panel to look into sequential vaccination: Rajesh Tope

PUNE: State health minister Rajesh Tope on Thursday recommended formation of a core committee comprising ministers and health professionals to chalk out a detailed plan on if sequential vaccination should be introduced to ensure smooth inoculation of those in the 18 to 44 years age group.
“The core committee under the chief minister and comprising ministers from all the parties in the Maha Vikas Aghadi would soon hold a meeting to decide on the way ahead. My department has sought for the meeting soon to chart the roadmap for this phase of vaccination to ensure that the process remains smooth,” he said.
Senior health officials said sequential vaccination might even consider giving preference to citizens with comorbidities in the age group of 18-44 years. They stated that the entire issue of sequencing was to ensure that there was no mismanagement.
“The committee will decide on the vaccination of the 18-44 age group in sub-groups such as 18-25, 25-35 and 35-44, and come out with guidelines on whether comorbid people in the sub-groups can be vaccinated first,” said a health official.
The modalities would be decided by the core committee under the chief minister and the guidelines would be issued after the meeting, expected shortly, said the health official.
The state health minister said they had only got a purchase order of Rs3 lakh from Serum Institute of India when the state required much more. The state needs 12 crore doses to vaccinate 5.71 crore citizens in this age group.
The state is already talking to foreign vaccine manufacturers but is yet to float tenders. It is trying to get the available doses first.
Pradeep Bhargava, member of the Pune Covid platform, said, “Opening vaccination for the entire lot in this age group will only lead to huge crowds at centres, leading to more Covid spread, and even law and order situation. Frankly, even the IT system may crash with such loads of registration.”
He said, “Maharashtra should open only 30-45 age group in the first tranche and look at the 18-29 group in the next lot for an orderly conduct of vaccination. It is still grappling with the vaccination of 3 crore in the 45-plus age group.”