Nagpur faces vaccine shortage, 2,500 doses wasted amid rising Covid cases

There is growing concerned as 381 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 10 days, while at the same time, the administration has suspended COVID-19 vaccinations for the past 10 days.

Adding to the existing problems, 2,500 Covid vaccine doses have expired without being administered to anyone. Despite the increasing demand for vaccination due to the surge in positive cases, it appears that the administration is still not taking the matter seriously.

Once the first wave of the coronavirus had been brought under control in the Nagpur district, the COVID-19 vaccination program was launched on January 16, 2021. The only option to combat the third wave of Corona was the vaccine. Consequently, a campaign for administering precautionary booster doses was initiated.

The government announced that citizens over the age of 18 would receive a free booster dose for 75 days. However, as the number of cases decreased, a large number of people neglected to take the booster shot.

With the resurgence of COVID-19 cases, there has been a surge in demand for vaccines in Nagpur. However, since April 1, 2023, vaccination centres at Mayo, Medical, and private hospitals have been closed due to the unavailability of vaccine stocks. The scarcity of vaccines has created panic and fear among the people as there is no vaccine available anywhere in the city.

In January 2023, as the number of COVID-19 cases started to rise in China, a "booster dose" campaign was reintroduced in the Nagpur district. Subsequently, on February 7, 2023, the government provided 5,000 doses of Covaxin specifically for the Nagpur district.

Since the 'expiry date of this vaccine was 31 March 2023, some 2,500 doses have gone waste. Starting from December 2022, there has been a shortage of Covishield vaccine supply in the Nagpur district. Consequently, a significant number of people have been unable to receive their second dose of this vaccine.

The central government has approved the booster dose of Bharat Biotech's corona preventive 'Incovacc' intranasal vaccine. But it has not yet reached the hospitals in Nagpur. According to experts, if this vaccine is available, the risk of other viruses including Corona can be reduced.

Over 4 L people still have not taken the second dose

It has been three years since the vaccination campaign started, but nearly 18% (which is over 4 lakh) of the people in the city have not received even the second dose of the vaccine. The target for the booster dose is 16,87,739 in the city, but only around 12 lakh people have received it so far.