COVID-19: Dose shortage hits vaccination drive in Mumbai
Several vaccination centers across Mumbai, including a jumbo COVID-19 facility in business district Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), suspended inoculation on Friday morning due to a shortage of doses, BMC sources said. The remaining centers are also likely to suspend the vaccination drive soon as the available stock is fast depleting, according to the sources.
Mumbai waiting to get 1.80 lakh vaccine doses on Friday
"Meanwhile, Mumbai is expected to get up to 1.80 lakh fresh COVID-19 vaccine doses on Friday," Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's Executive Health Officer Mangala Gomare said. "As many as 75 of the 120 centers, mainly at private hospitals, suspended vaccination on Friday morning due to unavailability of doses, while some other centers suspended the drive within few hours after the stock got over," sources said.
The jumbo COVID-19 center at BKC also suspended vaccination
"The jumbo COVID-19 center at BKC, where the civic body has set up a mega inoculation facility, also suspended vaccination after administering less than 200 doses available in stock," a doctor from the center said.
Mumbai Mayor had raised an alarm on Thursday
On Thursday, Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar had said that due to a shortage of doses, the vaccination drive will come to halt at all centers in Mumbai from Friday, and sought immediate supplies to replenish the existing stock. The civic body of Mumbai had claimed it had suspended vaccination at 25 centers in private hospitals on Thursday due to the unavailability of doses.
COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Mumbai
Asked about the situation, Gomare said, "The centers where vaccine doses have run out of stock have suspended the drive, but exact details were not available." According to BMC data, Mumbai reported 8,938 new COVID-19 cases and 23 fresh deaths on Thursday. 48,902 more COVID-19 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours, taking the number of samples examined so far to 44,54,140.
