Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of spreading "misconceptions, confusion and lies" about COVID-19 vaccines, which was leading to many people "putting their lives in danger" by refusing to take the doses.

He was reacting to a tweet by Gandhi in which the latter had taken a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi''s radio programme Mann Ki Baat. "Bas Har Deshwasi Tak Vaccine Pahucha Do, Fir Chahe Mann Ki Baat Bhi Suna Do!" (Just deliver the vaccine to every citizen, and then put forth your Mann ki Baat if you want)," Gandhi had tweeted.

Hitting back, the MP CM said the PM was providing free vaccines to all while Gandhi was "only spreading confusion".

"Shame on you Rahul Baba, it is prime minister Narendra Modi who is getting people vaccinated and not you. The prime minister is providing free vaccines to all the citizens of the country and you are only spreading confusion! You spread confusion, lied due to which many people refused to get vaccines," Chouhan said on Twitter.

During the day, seeking to make people shed their reservations about vaccines against coronavirus, Modi spoke to residents of Dulariya village in MP''s Betul district, and the chat was aired on the PM''s monthly ''Mann Ki Baat'' broadcast on Sunday.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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Rahul Gandhi spreading confusion, lies about vaccination: MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan

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