Running Out Of Stocks, Mumbai Shuts Down Private COVID-19 Vaccination Centres Till Monday
In a major setback to Maharashtra which is struggling to keep its COVID vaccination drive on track amid crippling shortages, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has decided to shut down private vaccination centres in Mumbai temporarily.
"Due to insufficient supply of COVID-19 vaccine, vaccination will not be available at the immunisation centres of private hospitals on April 10, 11 and 12, 2021," the BMC said.
Drive to resume once stocks are back
The vaccination drive at private hospitals will resume once more vaccine doses are made available, it added.
The civic body, however, said that vaccines will be available in government-run centres.
"On April 10, vaccination will take place in government and civic centres between noon and 6am, and it will be between 9am and 5pm on April 11. Citizens eligible for vaccination can travel to centres during curfew on medical grounds," the BMC said.
There are 49 vaccination centres in government and BMC run hospitals in the metropolis, while 71 have been set up in private hospitals, and some 50,000 people are being inoculated daily, as per BMC data.
Some 90 vaccination centres, including 71 in private facilities, had to be shut on Friday due to a shortage of vaccine doses.
Protests in some centres
At several centres, people protested after being asked to go back due to the lack of vaccine doses.
Maharashtra, the worst-affected state due to COVID-19 has been struggling to get vaccine supplies from the Central government to keep its inoculation drive going.
Though the government had recently allocated 17 lakh doses to the state, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope said they needed 40 lakh vaccine doses a week.
As per the latest data released for April 9, Maharashtra has administered the highest 93,38,531 jabs, comprising 84,35,010 first doses and 903,521 second doses, making it the best performer in the?national vaccination programme.
As the state continues to grapple with vaccine shortages, Raju Shetti, the leader of a local outfit called Swabhimani Shetkari Saghtana has threatened that they will start stopping vehicles transporting vaccines from Serum Institute.
"I have written to the Prime Minister Home Minister and Health Minister stating that if the supply of vaccines is not increased for Maharashtra within a week, we will start stopping vehicles transporting vaccines to other states from Serum Institute of India," Shetti told ANI.
