Minister for Minor Irrigation J.C. Madhuswamy said on Sunday that the State is expected to complete vaccination of all eligible people within three months from now and the government has set aside ₹2,000 crore for it.
Speaking to reporters in Udupi, the Minister said that the companies which manufactured vaccines too need time for production.
He said that Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president D.K. Shivakumar criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the Union government has rolled out a poor vaccination programme is baseless and his criticism holds no merit. His statement is politically motivated and nothing more, he said.
The Minister said that this is the time of a health emergency and being the leader of the Opposition party, Mr. Shivakumar has a duty to oppose the government’s decisions. But only cautious comments make sense even for an Opposition party leader, he said.
On Mr. Shivakumar inviting all those who want to join the Congress, the Minister said that political parties have an expansion aim. So there is nothing special about Mr. Shivakumar saying it. Leaders from other parties too can join the BJP, he said.
The Minister was in Udupi to oversee the progress made in vented dam projects. He also took part in a programme to transplant paddy saplings in a field.
Referring to the former Minister Ramesh Jarkiholi’s political future, he said that he fell for the conspiracy and leaders in the BJP have sympathy for him. “Mr. Ramesh Jarkiholi may come clean through a legal battle,” he added.
