Chandigarh: With Government hospitals in the state failing to kickstart the process of vaccinating people in the 18-44 age group due to non-availability of vaccine doses, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday directed the Health Department to explore all options for the supply of vaccination.
Though the state government had made payment of Rs 10.37 crore to Serum Institute of India (SII) for procurement of around 30 lakh doses on April 26, no schedule for supply had so far been received from them, Health Secretary Hussan Lal informed the state cabinet during a virtual meeting chaired by the Chief Minister.
Only some private hospitals, which had placed direct orders for vaccination, had commenced the process of vaccinating the 18-44 population, the meeting was informed. For the state government, SII has only indicated that the availability of Covishield will be known in about four weeks’ time, he added.
The meeting was informed that in the circumstances, vaccination in the 18-44 age group could not be launched in government hospitals, nor was there any clarity on when the process could begin.
