Allow more pharma companies to manufacture Covid vaccine: Delhi CM to Centre

Kejriwal said while the Delhi government aims vaccinate the entire adult population of the Capital in three months, they have only a few days’ stock of vaccine left. The entire country is facing a shortage of vaccines

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday urged the Centre to engage more pharmaceutical companies in Covid vaccine production as well as draft a national scheme for vaccinating the entire population of the country in the next few months.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. (File photo)

“The crisis in Delhi currently is not of ICU or oxygen beds, but the shortage of vaccines… In Delhi, currently, the vaccine turnout is high and all arrangements are in place… Currently, we administer 125,000 doses per day. Soon, we want to scale this up to 300,000 doses per day. Our aim is to ensure that the entire adult population of Delhi is vaccinated in three months. But, in Delhi, we have only a few days’ stock of vaccine left. The entire country is facing a shortage of vaccines. Some states are struggling to widen the vaccine drive because of this shortage. Vaccine shortage is a major challenge now,” the chief minister said in an online press briefing.

He added, “Only two companies in India are in vaccine production. Together, these companies are capable of producing 60-70 million vaccines a month. This way, it would take more than two years to vaccinate the entire population of the country. Such a long span is likely to witness multiple waves, which would lead to more deaths. So, it is important to take up vaccine production on a war footing and draft a national scheme to vaccinate the entire population of the country in the next few months. Unless every Indian is vaccinated, we cannot win the war against Covid-19.”

Currently, two Covid vaccines are available in India: Covishield, produced by Pune-based Serum Institute of India; and Covaxin, produced by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech.

“Production of vaccines in India should not be restricted to the two companies...The Centre should take the vaccine formula from the two companies (SII and Bharat Biotech) and give it to the other companies which are capable of producing safe vaccines. In such tough times, the Centre has the powers to take such decisions… It should be ensured that any plant in India that is capable of vaccine production should be engaged in the process. This is the only way to ensure that the entire population of India is vaccinated at the earliest,” said Kejriwal, drawing parallels with the shortage of PPE kits faced during the first wave of the pandemic in India.

He said, “Imagine if only two companies had the right to produce PPE kits, we would have faced a major shortage of PPE kits too. Currently, many companies in India are making PPE kits… India has top pharma companies and the best of scientists. I am sure that they will cooperate in vaccine production. A fraction of the profit made by the other companies could be given to the original two companies as royalty, for they are the ones with the formula. This is the only way we can shield our citizens against the next wave.”