Vaccine Crunch: Odisha Stock Figures Make For Grim Reading

Bhubaneswar: Acute shortage of COVID-19 vaccines has forced the closure of over 1,300 centres in Odisha, with Sonepur and Koraput districts being the worst hit.

Of the vaccination centres closed, 670 were shut on Thursday and 692 had downed shutters on Wednesday.

According to government data, Odisha has received 4,344,140 doses of vaccines and already administered 3,787,520. This means the state has only 556,620 doses left in stock.

With the state averaging 172,383 jabs daily since April 1, the remaining stock will finish in 3,2 days.

Meanwhile, another 200,000 doses for Odisha is in the pipeline. If this comes through, then the state can continue its vaccination drive for 4.4 days.

Faced with the shortage, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday sought 10 days’ stock of COVID-19 vaccine and Rs 300 crore for managing the surge in cases from the Centre.

Also Read: PM’s Meet: Naveen Seeks 10 Days’ Stock of Vaccine and Rs 300 crore For COVID-19 Managemen