Need 15 lakh vaccine doses a week, minister tells Centre

Tribune News Service

Kapurthala, April 26

Punjab Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu said the state government would provide treatment to Covid patients coming from Delhi and any other part of the country without any delay or discrimination.

Inaugurating the dialysis unit at Civil Hospital here at Bholath, the minister said the false propaganda of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal about the world class health services and infrastructure in the national capital has come to light.

Talking about the Covid vaccination drive, he said more than 30 lakh people have been vaccinated in Punjab, for which 25.48 lakh doses of Covishield and 2.64 lakh doses of Covaxin have been used. He appealed to the Union Government to regularise the supply of vaccines in the state as the trained staff and infrastructure provided by the Punjab Government could vaccinate 3 lakh people daily, requiring 15 lakh doses every week. He said the Health Department had already written to the Union Ministry of Health on April 22.

Regarding the preparations for vaccination for people above 18 years of age from May 1, he said Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh had asked the department to order 30 lakh Covishield vaccine doses.

Replying to a query regarding the shortage of oxygen, he said the plants of the Punjab government were running at full capacity while the Central government had reduced the liquid oxygen quota of Punjab.

At Bholath today, Sidhu inaugurated a dialysis unit set up by Baba Zorawar Singh, Baba Fateh Singh Seva Society at Civil Hospital at a cost of about Rs 85 lakh. He lauded the contribution made by the society and also interacted with the patients who came for dialysis at the hospital.