JOIN USInvoke compulsory licensing to expand domestic production of Covid-19 vaccine: top Opposition leaders
Twelve top Opposition leaders on Wednesday shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to procure Covid-19 vaccines centrally from domestic and global suppliers, invoke compulsory licensing to expand domestic production and immediately start a free and universal vaccination across the country.
Emphasising that the Covid-19 pandemic in our country has "assumed unprecedented dimensions of a human catastrophe", the leaders, including Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, also demanded that the government stop the Central Vista construction and use the money allocated for the project for procuring oxygen and vaccines.
The joint letter was also signed by former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda (JD-S), NCP chief Sharad Pawar, CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray (Shiv Sena), West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee (Trinamool Congress), Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin (DMK), Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren (JMM), National Congress patriarch Farooq Abdullah, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, CPI General Secretary D Raja and Bihar Opposition Leader Tejaswi Yadav (RJD).
This is the second joint letter by Opposition leaders to Modi in ten days. On May 2, the leaders had urged the Centre to focus all attention in ensuring the uninterrupted flow of Oxygen supplies to all hospitals and health centres across the country.
"We have repeatedly in the past drawn your attention, independently and jointly, to the various measures that are absolutely imperative for the Central government to undertake and implement. Unfortunately, your government has either ignored or refused all these suggestions. This only compounded the situation to reach such an apocalyptic human tragedy," they said.
The leaders also demanded that the government should release all money held in the unaccounted private trust fund, PM-CARES to buy more vaccines, Oxygen and medical equipment required.
They also wanted that the jobless be given at least Rs 6,000 per month besides free distribution of foodgrains to the needy, saying that over one crore tonnes of foodgrains are currently rotting in central godowns.
Referring to the farm protests, the leaders also demanded that the controversial agri laws should be repealed, claiming that it should be done to lakhs of "our annadatas (providers of food) becoming victims of the pandemic so that they can continue to produce food to feed the Indian people".
"Though it has not been the practice of your office or government, we would appreciate a response to our suggestions in the interests of India and our people," they added.