Navi Mumbai, Thane Prep for 3rd Covid Wave, Float Tenders to Directly Buy Vaccines from Across World

Alarmed by warnings of a third wave of coronavirus, the municipal corporations of Thane and Navi Mumbai have floated global tenders to independently procure vaccines to speed up the inoculation drive. This comes close on the heels of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) floating expression of interest (EoI) to buy 50 lakh vaccines.

According to a report in Times of India, while the Thane civic body intends to purchase five lakh vaccine doses in the coming days, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) wants to procure at least four lakh doses of Covid vaccines directly from manufacturers across the world.

India has opened vaccination for some 960 million eligible citizens. Between January and May 2021, India bought roughly 350 million doses of the two approved vaccines – the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab, manufactured as Covishield by the Serum Institute of India (SII), and Covaxin by Indian firm Bharat Biotech. At $2 per dose, they were among the cheapest in the world, but not nearly enough to inoculate even 20% of the country’s population, reported BBC.

Russia’s Sputnik V will also be out for people soon after inking pact with Dr Reddy’s. As many as 60,000 doses of the second batch of Sputnik V on Sunday landed at Delhi’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport. The Indian manufacturers on May 14 soft launched imported vaccine, which is priced at Rs 948, with five per cent GST per dose (retail price).

In Thane, the announcement was made by commissioner Dr Vipin Sharma on Sunday, following directives by guardian minister Eknath Shinde who emphasised the need for broadening the vaccination drive in not just the city but the entire district, the TOI report stated.

Mayor Naresh Mhaske was quoted as saying the vaccine purchased by floating global tenders will help the corporation widen the ambit of the vaccination drive. “We have already delivered over three lakh doses and covered over two lakh residents, including frontline and healthcare workers and senior citizens and those in the 45 plus age group,” Mhaske added.

“We are preparing for the third wave, and immunising the residents ahead of it will help us stay in control. We have issued directions to the health department to float the tenders soon,” added Dr Sharma.

Dr Devi Shetty, chairperson of Narayana Health and a member of the Supreme Court-appointed national task force for devising a scientific mechanism for distributing medical oxygen, had recently said in an interview India needs to “vaccinate 51 crore people” in the next two-three months to protect itself from the third wave of coronavirus infections. “Vaccination is by far the best and the cheapest solution for Covid-19. It has been proven beyond doubt that vaccination works. We need to vaccinate everyone above the age of 18 years,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Thane civic body has identified and finalised nearly 85 private hospitals operating in the city to deliver the vaccine shots after tying up with housing societies and commercial units. A prominent corporate house has already delivered nearly 2,200 doses after aligning with a private hospital, said a municipal official. “We have chalked out plans to fight a possible third wave that may hit the region any time in the next few months,” NMMC commissioner Abhijit Bangar was quoted as saying.

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