Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Saturday that a shortage of COVID-19 vaccine doses still exists in the national capital, adding that three crore vaccines will be needed to immunise 1.5 crore beneficiaries (above 18 years of age) in three months. He further noted that Delhi has received only 40 lakh doses so far.
Elaborating further on the COVID-19 vaccination drive in the national capital, Kejriwal exuded confidence that if the Delhi government receives 80-85 lakh doses per month, the inoculation process can be concluded within the set target of three months.
If Delhi government is given 80-85 lakh doses of COVID-19 vaccine per month, we can complete vaccination within three months: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal pic.twitter.com/mAGzhZT6d4
— ANI (@ANI) May 8, 2021
Explaining the math further, the Delhi CM stated, "To complete vaccination within 3 months, we need to vaccinate 3 lakh people every day. Currently, we are inoculating 1 lakh people a day. I request the central government to ensure adequate availability of vaccines to Delhi."
He further stated that the Delhi government currently has 5-6 days' stock of COVID-19 vaccines available and vaccination is taking place in full swing. Kejriwal added that his government is worried about children since there is no vaccine available for them yet.
We're especially worried about children because they can't be vaccinated now. I appeal to experts & the central govt to bring vaccines for children as soon as possible. We have 5-6 days of vaccine left in Delhi, vaccination is going on in full swing: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal pic.twitter.com/IsGvGvIv53
— ANI (@ANI) May 8, 2021
Meanwhile, the Delhi government has organised a mass vaccination drive for media (electronic, digital, and print) personnel at the media houses' offices. According to a study conducted by Rate the Debate, an initiative of Delhi's Institute of Perception Studies, more than 100 journalists succumbed to COVID-19 in India last year and 52 reporters succumbed to the infection in April 2021 alone.
As many as 37, 85,047 people have been inoculated in Delhi so far. Of these, 29, 45,498 people have been administered the first dose whereas 8,22,549 people received the second dose of the jab, according to the Union Health Ministry data.
Edited by Mehak Agarwal