The central government, last week, had announced that all those over the age of 18 can get the shot from May 1. Currently, only people over 45 are eligible.
Maharashtra cabinet minister Nawab Malik announced Sunday that the state will vaccinate its residents for free. The decision was reportedly taken at a virtual cabinet meeting. Earlier several states like Andhra Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, UP, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa had decided to administer Covid-19 vaccine free of cost to all those above 18 years of age from May 1. The central government, last week, had announced that all those over the age of 18 can get the shot from May 1. Currently, only people over 45 are eligible.
Maharashtra Government to vaccinate all its citizens free of cost: State Minister Nawab Malik pic.twitter.com/1NTIbkUGbo
— ANI (@ANI) April 25, 2021
Earlier in the day, the Maharashtra Chief Minister’s Office or CMO had tweeted that Serum Institute CEO Adar Poonawalla has assured Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray of “maximum support” in scaling up vaccinations in Covid-hit Maharashtra. The Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII) manufactures Covishield, one of the three anti-coronavirus vaccines approved for use in India.
“CM Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray has been assured of maximum support by Mr Adar Poonawalla and the Serum Institute of India to ensure maximum vaccination at the earliest in the State of Maharashtra,” the CMO tweeted.
“We are proud to have a world-class institution like Serum Institute of India in our state and we look forward to a strategic partnership for the safety of our citizens from COVID-19,” it added.
We are proud to have a world-class institution like Serum Institute of India in our state and we look forward to a strategic partnership for the safety of our citizens from COVID-19.
— CMO Maharashtra (@CMOMaharashtra) April 24, 2021
India recorded 3,49,691 cases and 2767 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the data by Union Health Ministry. On the vaccination front, 25,36,612 got their jab in the previous day with the total count at 14,09,16,417.
Five states – Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Kerala account have contributed to 54% of the caseload in the country.
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