Karnataka’s BJP government has yet to decide whether to offer free vaccination to those aged 18 to 45 since the state is grappling with a fiscal stress caused by last year’s lockdown.
The Centre has refused to fund the vaccination of the 18-45 group — which becomes eligible for the jab from May 1 — putting the ball in the states’ court.
Several states including BJP-ruled Assam, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh have announced free vaccination at government facilities for the 18-45 group, but B.S. Yediyurappa’s administration is still calculating the costs.
About 3.5 crore people in Karnataka are aged between 18 and 45 and will require 7 crore doses of the vaccine. While the state government has decided to buy 1 crore doses for now at an estimated Rs 400 crore, a cabinet meeting on Monday will decide whether this age group would be vaccinated free, state health minister K. Sudhakar said.
While the Centre provided vaccines free to the states for inoculating healthcare and frontline workers and those aged over 45, the states will have to buy Covishield at Rs 400 per dose for the 18-45 group.
Private facilities will be vaccinating a segment of the population that is willing to pay their charges.
A health department source said that at Rs 400 a dose, the state will need to spend Rs 2,800 crore if it has to provide free vaccination to all its 6.5 crore adults. (The figure includes 3 crore healthcare and frontline workers and over-45s who were already eligible for free vaccination at government facilities.)
Till now, 83.8 lakh people in Karnataka have received their first or second shots.
Procuring sufficient doses of vaccines has become urgent amid a shortage of doses and a steep rise in infections. From below 1,000 fresh cases a day sometime ago, Karnataka’s single-day number jumped to 26,962 on Friday, its total active cases climbing to 214,311.
While Karnataka borrowed Rs 70,671 crore in 2020-21, it is expected to borrow Rs 71,642 crore this financial year. “The figure could rise if the state borrows to fund free vaccination,” an official said.
Former chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy of the Janata Dal Secular on Saturday tweeted an “appeal (for) free vaccines for all the 6.5 crore people of Karnataka”, citing the examples of neighbouring Kerala and Goa.
Leader of the Opposition P.C. Siddaramaiah of the Congress slammed Yediyurappa and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Covid situation in the country and Karnataka that he said had “gone out of hand”.
His advice for Modi: “Virus will not vanish if you repeatedly appear on television without any purpose. And also you are not a headmaster to teach lessons to CMs. First show your responsibility by fulfilling the requests placed by the state govts.”
