BHUBANESWAR : Chemists and druggists have threatened to shut their shops if they are not given frontline worker status and vaccination on priority. The chemists on Thursday said despite repeated appeals, the State government is neither recognising them as frontline workers nor making any arrangements for their vaccination. Members of Khurda District Chemists and Druggists Association said more than 20,000 chemists including 1,800 in Khurda district are serving the ailing people amid great risks since the beginning of outbreak of the pandemic.
“The government has declared medical staff, police, journalists and sanitation workers as frontline workers it is yet to include chemists and druggists in the category. At least 100 chemists and dispensary staff have lost their lives after contracting the infection since March last year,” said Association president Pragati Ranjan Mohanty. He said chemists and dispensary staff should be vaccinated across the State on priority to protect them and others from getting infected.
“Chemists deal with a large number of people on a daily basis and are exposed to the virus. In such scenario, if a chemist gets infected he/she could become a super spreader,” Mohanty pointed out and warned that the government will have to pay a heavy price if the demand for early vaccination of chemists is not considered immediately.
“If government and local administrations do not pay heed to our grievance, we will be forced to down our shutters. We cannot take the risk of being super spreaders and the responsibility of the crisis will be on the government,” said association Secretary Prasanta Kumar Jena.