Rajesh Tope: Vaccination programme will require Rs 7,500 crore, free vaccine decision soon

The Centre on April 19 had announced a ''liberalised'' policy, making all above 18 years of age eligible to get vaccinated from May 1. The third phase began on April 1 for all above 45 years of age. 

Maharashtra government will vaccinate all its citizens free of cost against coronavirus, state Minister Nawab Malik said on Sunday. But so far no such decision has been made.NCP state president Jayant Patil said that Mahavikas Aghadi will take a decision on free vaccination in a joint meeting. On the other hand, Health Minister Rajesh Tope has also clarified that free vaccination has not been decided yet.

If there is no vaccine in the country from May 1, then the question before all the states is how to start vaccination. Health Minister Rajesh Tope has expressed satisfaction that more than 1.5 crore citizens have been vaccinated in the state at this time. Also, the cost of the new phase of vaccination is Rs 7,500 crore. It will be up to the cabinet to decide whether the vaccine will be given free to all or to the economically weaker sections.

Tope said a decision has not yet been made. He also said that the availability of vaccines is a big challenge. The Centre on April 19 had announced a ''liberalised'' policy, making all above 18 years of age eligible to get vaccinated from May 1. It has also allowed state governments and private hospitals to purchase vaccines from manufacturers. So it is clear that the central government will not supply vaccines to people below the age of 45. Meanwhile, the price of Covishield vaccine will be Rs 150 for the centre, Rs 400 for the state and Rs 600 for the private sector.

The price of covaxin has also been announced at Rs 600 to the states and Rs 1,200 to the private sector. The rate was discussed in the previous cabinet. It was unanimously decided to give free vaccines to the people of the state. Nawab Malik had announced that Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had approved it.Given the growing prevalence of corona in the state, the vaccine needs to be widely available. It will take three to four months for everyone to get vaccinated. He assured that the government will continue its efforts to make the vaccine available to all without any problems.

Amid a sharp rise in the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Maharashtra, the state on Monday vaccinated 5.34 lakh people in a single day, informed the state health department.