Bengaluru short of Covid booster shots, seeks 5 lakh vaccine doses

BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath said though the city has surplus Covaxin stock, there is shortage of Covishield

Bengaluru seems to be short of booster dosages amid a surging demand as people rush to get the vaccination.

BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath on Friday said although the city has surplus Covaxin stock, there is shortage of Covishield.

“According to the data available with us, 90 per cent of our population is vaccinated with Covishield and hence, the demand is high.

“We have enough Covaxin doses that will lapse by the end of January, and we plan to send them back after we determine our requirement,” Girinath said.

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BBMP Special Commissioner (Health) Dr Trilok Chandra said they have written to the government requesting an immediate supply of at least five lakh doses of Covishield booster shots.

“Booster dose coverage in Bengaluru is as low as 20 per cent and since the last two to three days, the number of inquiries and demand for booster shots have increased. We have requested that we will need at least five lakh doses,” he said.

Dr Chandra added that the BBMP is reaching out to all beneficiaries to ensure they get booster shots. Girinath said wastewater surveillance and monitoring is on to track the virus spread with the civic body also readying a database of bed availability to handle a surge in Covid cases.

“The status of ventilators, ICUs, and oxygen plants are also being verified and we are speaking to all the stakeholders to ensure we are prepared to meet any surge in cases,” he said. “We have the experience of handling the previous waves. We have also improved our infrastructure capacity over the last few months.”