Karnataka Health Minister Dr Sudhakar confirmed on April 30, 2021 that the COVID-19 vaccination for the age group 18-45 in Bengaluru and other parts of Karnataka will not begin from May 1, 2021 as declared previously. However, citizens aged 18-45 have been urged to register themselves on the Co-WIN platform and wait for appointments which will be scheduled once the new doses arrive.
The statement is a response to the acute shortage of vaccines, oxygen, ICU and ventilator beds in the state whereby the government will have to administer the vaccines in a phased setup. The Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa in a statement on April 29 stated that out of the 99.40 lakh doses of the vaccine supplied by the Government of India, 93.50 lakh have been administered leaving the state with 5.9 lakh doses available. While an order has been placed to procure 1 Crore doses of vaccines, an additional 1 Crore will be ordered as well.
He added that owing to these times of crisis, the vaccination drive can only be rolled out based on vaccine availability and will be planned to ensure the implementation of a smooth and systematic vaccination process.
Due to the vaccine shortage, many individuals who were to receive the second dose of the vaccine have been forced to wait till new doses are available. As of April 28, the state has administered 51.93 lakh doses between April 1-27, making it an average of 1.92 lakh doses per day. However, over the last 7 days, the number has drastically decreased to 95,266 as a result of acute shortage.
April 29 witnessed a surge in COVID-19 cases, as Karnataka recorded 35,024 new cases and 270 deaths in a day making the number of positive cases in the state rise to 14.74 lakh with 15,306 fatalities.
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