Sir — Given the shortages in the availability of vaccines, the advice of the prime minister, Narendra Modi, to get oneself inoculated makes little sense (“Steep price”, April 27). The changes made in the Centre’s Covid-19 vaccination policy to widen the coverage by including citizens aged below 45 and above 18 years within its ambit will, in effect, worsen the inequality among states as well as different economic groups. The policy, along with deregulating the prices of the vaccines, puts the onus of getting vaccinated on the individual. This will place additional pressure on the people as well as the states which are already ill-equipped to handle the situation.

The Modi government has, time and again, reiterated that it wants to move towards ‘one nation, one tax’ and similar centralizing measures. In this context, one must ask, why is it that the country cannot have a centralized vaccination policy for all its citizens? The Union government appears to have washed its hands off its responsibilities at this time of grave crisis. The Centre’s liberalization of vaccine sales and deregulation of prices, without augmenting supply, indicates that it did not think this through.

The Central government had a year to prepare and strengthen its healthcare services in the event of a second wave of coronavirus infections. It has failed to deliver on every possible aspect. The steep pricing of the vaccines — Covaxin has been priced at Rs 600 for state hospitals and Rs 1,200 for private hospitals — will only increase inequity in the vaccination programme. It is a tragedy that the citizens of India, a country deemed to be one of the largest producers and exporters of vaccines in the world, are facing this immense fiasco in the midst of a pandemic.

S.S. Paul,
Nadia

Sir — It is unfortunate that we did not learn any lessons from the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic that swept through the nation last year. In the past few weeks, thousands of lives were lost as a result of government apathy and a general disregard for Covid-19 protocols among the masses. It was hoped that the government would ensure that the vaccination drive, which will involve inoculating millions of people, goes as seamlessly as possible. At the very least, the Centre must try to keep the vaccine prices as low as possible. Inequity in pricing will result in many forgoing the vaccination. The prices that are currently being set for people under the age of 45 and above 18 are simply too high for many to afford. The government must step up at this hour of need and do all it can to provide basic healthcare to the millions in need.

Bal Govind,
Noida

Sir — There is no doubt that India’s new vaccine pricing policy is blatantly discriminatory. The scheme goes against the policy of free and universal vaccination pursued by India for decades. The differential pricing among the Centre, states and private enterprises is arbitrary and is likely to leave large sections of the people, especially those belonging to the underprivileged sections of the population, out of vaccine coverage. The declaration of Bharat Biotech that it will supply Covaxin to the Centre at Rs 150, at Rs 600 to the states and at Rs 1,200 to private hospitals is alarming. There is no justification for the pricing of the same product to be so starkly varied among the three.

There is also a shifting of responsibility by the Centre to the states without giving the latter the necessary agency and wherewithal to discharge that responsibility. It is particularly insensitive to make the state governments, which are in a dire financial condition, pay a higher price for the vaccine.

Strangely enough, at this time, the Bharatiya Janata Party thought that it was fit to promise free vaccines while campaigning in poll-bound Bengal. The same promise was earlier made in Bihar during the assembly elections last year, which, unsurprisingly, remains unfulfilled. It is unfortunate that the Centre continues to make false promises in the midst of a calamity.

Shovanlal Chakraborty,
Calcutta

Sir — The Centre has botched up the Covid-19 care infrastructure and the vaccination drive beyond repair. The citizens of India have been left to fend for themselves and their loved ones.

Kiran Singh,
New Delhi

Desperate times

Sir — As India reels under a deadly second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, reports have emerged that wealthy Indians who are able to afford exorbitant airfare or private jets are fleeing the country to places with lower rates of infection. With India’s healthcare infrastructure collapsing, people are not just struggling for basic healthcare, but are also scrambling to find space to cremate the dead. These are certainly desperate times for all, but this surge, once again, draws attention to the stark inequalities present in Indian society. The privileged may have the option of leaving the country at this time, but most are forced to helplessly watch as their loved ones suffer and die. The government must be held accountable for its lapses.

Abhra Sengupta,
Calcutta