Coronavirus: The centre has released data on COVID-19 vaccine wastage in states (AFP)
Bhopal:
Madhya Pradesh has joined other states in disputing the centre’s data on COVID-19 vaccine wastage. Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, where the BJP is not in power, have already rejected the centre’s data that shows high vaccine wastage in these two states.
Madhya Pradesh, which the centre said has a vaccine wastage rate of 10.7 per cent, has indicated there could be issues with the data or a communication gap with the Health Ministry.
Madhya Pradesh Medical Education Minister Vishwas Sarang told reporters he has asked officials in the state to contact their central counterparts and revisit the data for fixing discrepancies.
“According to our calculation, the vaccine wastage is 1.3 per cent. The centre’s figure for Madhya Pradesh is quite high. It is possible the actual figures from our end couldn’t be communicated properly to the centre. I have asked our officials to get in touch with officials at the Health Ministry and get the figures corrected,” Mr Sarang told reporters.
Madhya Pradesh is the first BJP-ruled state that disagreed with the centre’s data on vaccine wastage.
The Health Ministry data released yesterday showed that Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh have reported 37.3 per cent and 30.2 per cent vaccine wastage, respectively. These are high figures amid the shortage of vaccines across the country.
Chhattisgarh Health Minister TS Singh Deo and his Jharkhand counterpart Banna Gupta have criticised the Health Ministry for what they claimed was showing wrong data. Both have denied their states are the biggest vaccine wasters in the country, as the centre’s data indicate.
The centre’s “intention is not right”, Mr Deo said. “They are calling it vaccine wastage without getting proper data. If centre does not believe us, it can send its own team for a probe. Their intention is not right and these statements are politically motivated,” Mr Deo said.