A LONG SHOT

THE RACE TO MEET THE DECEMBER 31 DEADLINE FOR VACCINATING THE COUNTRY'S 94-CRORE ADULT POPULATION AGAINST COVID-19 IS FRAUGHT WITH CHALLENGES SUCH AS PRODUCTION-SUPPLY RISKS AND VACCINE HESITANCY

- JOE C. MATHEW

On June 27, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spent almost 10 minutes of his monthly 30-minute Mann Ki Baat address to the nation on a call with representatives of Dulariya, a village in the district of Betul, Madhya Pradesh. The interaction was about Covid-19 and carried a message the Prime Minister wanted to convey to his pan-Indian audience — the importance of vaccination. Modi emphasised that mass vaccination is the only way to arrest the spread of the pandemic that is destroying lives and livelihoods.

Weeks earlier, the Modi government had set a December 31, 2021 deadline to vaccinate approximately 94-crore citizens and provide Covid cover to all of India’s adult population. With each person requiring two doses, it meant administering close to 190-crore jabs in the next five and a half months — a herculean task given that only around 40-crore doses have been given since India began vaccinations early this year. To meet the target, around 150-crore doses of Covid-19 vaccines need to be administered (90 lakh jabs daily on an average till December 31) and the government has been struggling to create an ecosystem to make that happen.

Domestic manufacturing of Covid-19 vaccines are being ramped up, a liberal approval process for foreign vaccines okayed by developed countries is in place, quality testing facilities have been added, logistics and supply chain mechanisms have been strengthened and private healthcare providers have been roped in. However, all of these are in an evolving phase and what Modi’s