PUNE: Maharashtra has a stock of over 44 lakh doses of Covishield and COVAXIN vaccines, enough to inoculate people eligible for taking the shots in the state, a senior health official said on Tuesday.
The vaccination drive in the country was expanded from Monday to include people above 60 years of age and those aged between 45 and 59 who have co-morbidities.
Asked whether there will be any shortage of doses in Maharashtra as the vaccination drive is being scaled up, state immunisation officer Dr Dilip Patil told PTI that the Centre is releasing sufficient number of doses to the state.
The Centre has also assured to provide more vaccine doses to Maharashtra, he said.
"Currently, we have over 44 lakh doses (39.94 lakh doses of Covishield and 4.08 lakh of COVAXIN) available with us. So far, 12 lakh people have been vaccinated 10 lakh more people can be inoculated with the stock available with us," the official said.
The state has enough vaccine doses, he said, adding that as of now, the immunisation drive is going on smoothly.
When contacted, Dr Subhash Salunke, the state's technical adviser on COVID-19, said the Centre should scale up the disbursement of vaccine doses.
"Since yesterday, practical difficulties regarding the Co-Win app are coming to light. People are complaining and that might lead to discontent," he said.
He said the Centre should increase the release of vaccine doses in advance, in proportion to the number of people eligible to receive the shots in the state.
"The Centre should work on both the aspects - smooth functioning of the Co-WIN app and timely release of the doses," he said.
Salunke also said the Centre should ensure that there is no shortage of vaccine in the state when people turn up for inoculation.
"People have been encouraged to take the vaccine now and the state government and private hospitals are also ready," he added.