Concerned at the pace at which the Covid-19 vaccination is taking place, a Parliamentary Standing Committee has said that it will take many years to vaccinate the whole population if the process continues at this speed.
The Standing Committee on Home Affairs also expressed concern that "a large number of people are missing the second dose" of the vaccine.
In its report on the Demands for Grants of Ministry of Home Affairs tabled in Parliament on Monday, the panel said, less than 1 per cent of the Indian population has been vaccinated till now and "at this rate, it will take many years to vaccinate the whole population".
"The Committee believes that it is a very serious issue as the virus is mutating and new variants of Covid-19 are being reported in different parts of the world," it said.
The panel recommended that all frontline health workers and the Covid-19 warriors, including paramilitary and state police personnel receive the recommended doses of vaccine. An attempt should be made to cover maximum people as early as possible, it said.
Referring specifically to Lakshadweep, the panel said the vaccination in the union territory can be done for everyone as the population is "very small" -- around 70,000. As the medical facilities are limited, it said, priority needs to be given for vaccination in Lakshadweep.
On the under-utilisation of funds during 2020-2021, Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla informed the panel that there were some curtailments and restrictions on the use of funds every month, as the government was keeping a watch on outgo because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Due to this, Bhalla said, there has been under-utilisation under few heads.
The Committee asked the MHA to speed up the construction work that came to halt due to the Covid-19 pandemic and complete the projects within a time frame without cost overruns.
(Published 15 March 2021, 11:50 IST)
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