SII CEO Adar Poonawalla promised to send 1.5 crore Covishield doses to Maharashtra after May 20: Rajesh Tope
Vaccine shortage in Maharashtra: The state on Wednesday halted the vaccination drive against Covid-19 for those in the age group of 18-44.
Serum Institute of India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla has promised to send 1.5 crore doses of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccine it manufactures, Covishield, to Maharashtra after May 20, according to the state health minister Rajesh Tope. The SII CEO made the promise to Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, the minister told news agency ANI.
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"Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla has promised the chief minister to deliver 1.5 crore doses of Covishield to Maharashtra after May 20. We will start the vaccination for the 18-44 years age group after we receive the vaccine," he said.
The state halted vaccination of those in the age group of 18-44 on Wednesday due to the unavailability of vaccines. "Vaccination for 18-44 age group has been suspended for the time being due to shortage of vaccines. All the doses purchased by the state government for the age group will now be diverted for the 45 category," Tope said after attending a cabinet meeting over the Covid-19 situation in state on Wednesday.
Also Read: Maharashtra halts vaccination for 18-44 age group, cites ‘shortage of doses’
On whether the government will impose stricter restrictions or a complete lockdown in Maharashtra to curb the spread of the virus, Tope said the health department and other ministers proposed to extend the lockdown in state for 15 days. "The chief minister will take the final decision on this matter," he said.
Maharashtra has the highest Covid-19 caseload in the country and it reported 46,781 fresh infections and 816 new deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the state health department on Wednesday. The new cases pushed the case tally in the state to 52,26,710 and the death toll to 78,007. The active number of Covid-19 cases in Maharashtra stands at 5,46,129.
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