Andhra Pradesh, which has decided to vaccinate the state’s entire eligible population of around 4 crore free of cost for Covid-19 at an estimated cost of â¹1,600 crore, has sought the approval of the Union government to import vaccines.
The YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government has decided to float global tenders to procure Covid-19 vaccines, including the Russiadeveloped Sputnik V, health secretary Anil Kumar Singhal said.
The Andhra government is also preparing to allow manufacturing of Covid-19 vaccines in the state with expedited approvals, he said.
Chief minister Reddy, who reviewed the vaccination and the Covid-19 pandemic situation in the state on Monday evening, has instructed officials to prepare details and get in touch with union government officials to finalise the global tenders.
“The state government is seeking the approval of the union government for procuring Covid-19 vaccines from the overseas markets by floating global tenders,” said an official at the chief minister’s office.
“The state government is also seeking clarity on who all can participate in the global tenders, especially to get clarity on contentious issues like whether Chinese vaccine makers should be allowed to participate in the tenders or not.”
Telangana to invite Global Tenders
The Telangana government on Tuesday decided to invite global tenders for procuring vaccines immediately. The TRS government has been accusing the Centre of not supplying required quantities of vaccine. The chief minister's office did not provide further details.
Karnataka Too Joins Buyers' List
Karnataka has decided to float a short-term global tender to buy 2 crore doses of vaccines to meet the state’s urgent needs. Deputy CM CN Ashwath Narayan, who heads the Covid-19 task force, held a meeting with senior officials and decided to complete the bidding process in seven days.
The state is staring at a shortage of vaccines in the face of rising demand from citizens. Kerala too, on April 28, decided to buy1 crore doses of vaccines to provide jabs free of cost.
The government, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan had said, will buy vaccines for three months from May.
The Delhi government will also float a global tender for procuring Covid vaccines, deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia announced on Tuesday.