Accelerate drive in India first before sending Covid vaccines outside: AAP

The AAP questioned the Centre for sending COVID-19 vaccines across the world instead of further accelerating the inoculation drive within the country, claiming it will take at least 15 years to vaccinate the entire population of India at this rate.

Addressing a press conference here, AAP spokesperson Raghav Chadha questioned the reason for "exporting" vaccines and not supplying it to the people in India first.

"Vaccination doses have been exported to 84 countries. The amount exported is higher than the number of vaccine doses given to the people in India. Should we care about people from our own country or from other countries?" Chadha said.

"Where has the Centre's vaccine nationalism gone? The AAP demands an increase in the rate of vaccinations against COVID-19 so that each and every Indian can get vaccinated," he said.

He further claimed that it will take 15 years to vaccinate the entire population of India if vaccination drive continues at the current pace.

"Some scientists say that to contain the virus at least 70 percent of the population has to be vaccinated. It will take 10 years to inoculate 70 per cent of the population of the country if the vaccination continues at the current pace while at the current pace, vaccinating everyone in the country will take about 15 years," he said.

In India, cumulatively, 7,91,05,163 vaccine doses have been administered through 12,31,148 sessions, as per the provisional report till 7 am.

These include 90,09,353 healthcare workers (HCWs) who have taken the 1st dose, 53,43,493 HCWs who have taken the 2nd dose, 97,37,850 frontline workers (FLWs) who have received the 1st dose, and 41,33,961 FLWs who have taken the 2nd dose.