Tribune News Service

Patiala, June 4

Following vaccine crunch, the Health Department is not inoculating beneficiaries in the 18 to 44 years age group for the past five days.

The Health Department announced that tomorrow also there would be no vaccination for this group. The Patiala Civil Surgeon, Dr Satinder Singh, said they had not received vaccine from the State Health Department. Therefore, they would be no vaccination of the 18 years plus age group, he added.

“For the past many days, we haven’t received any vaccine for the 18 to 44 years age group. The state has to provide vaccine for this age group. However, we are vaccinating beneficiaries above 45 years from the stock of the Central pool,” he said.

Despite bureaucrats’ tall claims of boosting the vaccination drive it has been severely hit over the past one week. Due to vaccine shortage, many beneficiaries have failed to get even their first dose. Health experts believe that at a time when the government should have been expediting the vaccination process, the Health Department is facing vaccine shortage.

The rural belt, which is severely hit by Covid, is also at the receiving end due to the vaccine crunch.

A health expert said, “Amid drop in positive cases, the government should vaccinate maximum people. At the present pace, majority of population will be waiting to get vaccinated and the third wave will arrive.”

Yesterday, only 1,297 beneficiaries above 45 years were inoculated at vaccination camps in the district, said the Health Department. So far, 3,55,471 people had been vaccinated in the district, the department added.