The Tamil Nadu government will procure 50 million COVID-19 vaccines to vaccinate the population in the age group of 18-44.
The state government had decided to opt for the global tender route to source COVID-19 vaccines as the allotment by the central government is insufficient.
A decision to this effect was taken at the meeting chaired by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin earlier this week in which several ministers and officials participated.
Tamil Nadu is showing a steady increase in COVID-19 cases
The Union government is supplying the vaccine to states for those who are 45 years of age and above but has asked the states to source the vaccines on its own for people between 18-44 age groups.
Meanwhile, former Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K Palaniswami wrote a letter to PM Modi requesting an increased supply of O2 and Remdesivir for the state.
Tamil Nadu is showing a steady increase in COVID-19 cases.
In his letter, the former Chief Minister said that the second wave of coronavirus has affected a large number of people all over the state, which was showing an “increasing trend” day by day with nearly 32,000 single-day cases.
Palaniswami writes to PM seeking enhanced supply of oxygen and Remdesivir
Due to the increase in the number of cases, there is a huge demand for beds, oxygen-supported beds, and ICU beds in both government and private hospitals, AIADMK Joint Coordinator and Leader of Opposition told Modi.
“There is also a long queue of patients waiting for admission in hospitals, all over Tamil Nadu,” he added.
According to the Union Health Ministry, ten states account for 85 per cent of the total novel coronavirus cases in the country.
Earlier today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for ramping up healthcare resources in rural areas to focus on door-to-door testing and surveillance and asserted that localized containment strategies are needed especially in states with high positivity rates districts.
Chairing a high-level meeting, the PM said states should be encouraged to report their COVID-19 numbers transparently “without any pressure of high numbers showing adversely on their efforts”.
