Shortage in supply of Covid-19 vaccines from the Centre to Bengal has forced hundreds from three blocks of West Burdwan to travel to neighbouring Jharkhand for jabs.

Bengal has received 2.68 crore doses from Centre so far, far short of the state’s requirement of nearly 14 crore vaccines to administer two doses to seven crore residents who are above 18 years and eligible for the jabs. In comparison, Jharkhand with a population of 3.29 crore has received over 1.01 crore doses.

Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has written to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to supply adequate vaccines to the state at the earliest.

According to central government guidelines, an Indian national can take vaccine doses anywhere in the country after registering via proper online procedures using his or her Aadhaar card number.

However, the journey to get vaccinated across the border has not been smooth for West Burdwan residents. Many have complained of harassment and arguments with people in Jharkhand’s Jamtara, where the residents of West Burdwan’s Kulti, Salanpur and Barabani blocks have been travelling to get the jab.

Many Bengal residents who took the jab in Jamtara said they were called “outsiders” by people there and asked why they were here and why they did not get vaccinated “in their own state”.

Pradip Dutta, 57, a grocer from Sitarampur in Kulti, said he had gone to Jamtara district hospital with wife Putul by train for their first dose of Covid-19 vaccine but their experience was “unpleasant”.

“We were in the queue at Jamtara district hospital. Some local people in the queue suddenly lost patience and accused us (Bengal residents) of taking a share of their vaccines,” said Dutta. At one point, local youths allegedly chased people from Bengal with bamboo sticks but were later pacified by police, he said.

Taxi operators in Kulti said they are getting a good number of passengers for Jamtara and charging anywhere between Rs 1,500 and Rs 2,000 for a trip to Jamtara.

Sources in the Jamtara administration in Jharkhand said they had arranged a separate queue for the people coming from Bengal. “Many people from Bengal are coming here for vaccinations and we are trying our best to give all of them the vaccines,” said Asha Ekka, medical officer at Jamtara district hospital.

However, sources at hospital in Jamtara admitted to giving priority to local people to avoid chaos and arguments.

“Local people become angry as many from Bengal come here regularly for vaccinations. We have set up a separate queue for people from Bengal and we give priority to our local residents,” said an official at the Jamtara hospital.

A health official in Jamtara said the district with a population of around nine lakh had received 2.5 lakh doses so far from the Centre.

Amarnath Chatterjee, administrator of Asansol Municipal Corporation, said they were running 17 Covid-19 vaccination centres in the municipal area. “We are vaccinating at least 5,000 people a day in the civic body area. There is a crisis of doses. Our chief minister has taken up the issue with the Centre,” he said.

Additional reporting by Animesh Bisoee in Jharkhand