Centre should cap vaccine prices, share formula to ramp up production: Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain

Amid the concern over COVID vaccine shortage, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Thursday stated that he has discussed with Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan that vaccine formula can be shared with other firms to ramp up production, new agency PTI reported.

Jain said he raised certain issues during a video conference with Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan.

Jain told Vardhan, "We should not get into global tendering for vaccination. Why should states do separate tenders? It will bring a bad name for the country."

He further suggested that Centre should cap vaccine prices. "Companies cannot 'be allowed to earn huge profits during crisis," Jain also said.

Vaccination centres shut

Meanwhile, Delhi government has been forced to shut down 100 vaccination sites over 17 schools that administered Bharat Biotech's COVAXIN vaccine due to a dearth of supply from the manufacturer, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said on Wednesday, news agency ANI report suggested.

Sisodia said in a press conference, "We had demanded 1.34 crore doses, 67 lakhs each of Covaxin and Covishield. Covaxin (Bharat Biotech) wrote to us yesterday that they can not provide it. They wrote 'we're making dispatches as per directives of concerned governmet officials'. Obvious that these are central government officials."

"Our reserve stock (of vaccine) is exhausted. The centres administering Covishield vaccines are functioning but we have had to close the centres administering Covaxin. So, we have had to close down more than 100 centres across 17 schools," Sisodia added.

Last week, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting other capable companies to manufacture the two COVID-19 vaccines -- Covaxin and Covishield -- being already produced in India, and said the Union government should do away with vaccine production monopoly using the patent law.

Delhi reports 10,489 new COVID infections, 308 deaths today

Delhi reported 308 more coronavirus deaths and 10,489 infections on Thursday with a positivity rate of 14.24 per cent, the lowest in a month, the Health Department said.

The number of new cases is the lowest since April 10 when 7,897 people were diagnosed with the disease. The positivity rate is the lowest since April 13, when it stood at 13.1 per cent, according to government data.

Delhi had reported 300 deaths and 13,287 cases on Wednesday with the positivity rate of 17 per cent.

On April 22, a positivity rate of 36.2 per cent, the highest so far, was recorded. The highest number of 448 deaths was reported on May 3.

(With inputs from agencies)