Kerala government has initiated steps for purchasing Covid-19 vaccines directly from manufacturers as the uncertainty over the vaccine supply from the Centre continued and Covid-19 cases kept reaching new highs with 26,995 fresh cases on Thursday.
The total number of active cases in the state crossed the 1.5 lakh mark and reached 1,56,226. The test positivity rate increased to 19.97 percent.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that top government officials were directed to initiate talks with vaccine manufacturers. The state was still expecting a positive response from the Centre to its demand for free vaccine supply. But the state would require vaccines in large quantities as around 1.65 crore people are there in 18 to 45 age group.
Meanwhile, the Chief Minister has convened an all party meeting to discuss the steps as well as a meeting with private hospital owners in the wake of complaints that some hospitals are charging exorbitantly from Covid patients.
Published 22 April 2021, 18:27 IST