Delhi CM Kejriwal urges Centre to procure COVID vaccines: 'Not time for petty politics'

As India is witnessing an acute shortage of vaccine, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday asked the Centre to buy vaccines and distribute them to the state governments. He said this is not the time for blame game and petty politics. After noting that in the last 24 hours around 900 new COVID-19 cases have been recorded in the National Capital, CM stressed that if new infections continue to decline, more activities will be allowed to open up in the city.

CM Kejriwal said the AAP government "just wants vaccines" for Delhi and sought to know where is the politicisation in that. On Saturday, he visited the Delhi government's drive-through COVID-19 vaccination centre at the Chhatrasal Stadium.

"Where is the politicisation in this? The people need vaccines, they (Centre) should tell where should we get the vaccines from. The central government has to procure the vaccines, after doing so they should give them to us and we will administer them to everyone," he said.

Taking to Twitter, he said, "People at Chhatrasal Stadium can come in their cars, motorcycles, or even on foot, and can get vaccinated here. Right now, this has been initiated for those above the age of 45 years because there is no vaccine for those below the age of 45 years. As soon as adequate vaccines arrive, vaccination for those below the age of 45 (18-45 years) will also be started, he added.

'Not the time for petty politics': CM Kejriwal

Kejriwal further said vaccination is the only solution to this problem and stated that this is "not the time for petty politics or to play the blame game".

"This is not the time for finger-pointing. This is not the time for debate and counter. The country is suffering from a pandemic. The experience of the entire world shows that vaccination is the sole solution for this. So they (Centre) should buy vaccines for the entire country and distribute them to the state governments. We will administer them. Why are they debating over this is beyond my understanding," he said.

CM Kejriwal speaks on Black Fungus

The chief minister also said till Friday, there were 450 cases of mucormycosis or black fungus in Delhi government hospitals. He said the Delhi government has demanded medicines accordingly.

"I have black fungus data till yesterday (May 28). There are two kinds – that of Delhi government and that of private hospitals and the central government hospitals on the other hand. In the Delhi government hospitals, there are about 450 cases of black fungus. The central government hospitals are dealing directly with the Centre. I understand that there is a countrywide paucity of medicines. The central government is giving whatever it can. As I understand, more injections of this medicine will be procured and will be distributed to all the state governments," he told PTI.

Amid rising incidents of black fungus in the national capital, the Delhi government had on Thursday declared it an epidemic.

Global Tender for Vaccine procurement

The Delhi government has floated a global expression of interest (EOI) for the procurement of the COVID-19 vaccine on an urgent basis. Kejriwal said that his government is making all efforts from their side but "till now all the governments which floated a global tender, their outcomes have not been very fruitful".

"So we have also floated it in the hope that a company comes forward, but on a general note, from what I have understood is that all the big vaccine manufacturing companies of the world want to deal directly with the central government and are communicating directly with them. So only time will tell as to how successful the different state governments will be but we have floated a global tender from our side," he added.

CM Kejriwal on Phase-wise unlocking process

On Friday, Kejriwal had announced that the process of lifting the lockdown gradually in the capital will begin from Monday, starting with the resumption of construction activities and reopening of factories for a week. As of Saturday, Delhi recorded 956 cases, the lowest since March 21, when the national capital had reported 823 cases. The phase-wise unlocking process in Delhi will begin after over six weeks of lockdown enforced in view of the second wave of COVID-19.

"Yesterday (May 28) we announced that two activities - construction activities and factories -- can be opened up because the poor such as migrant labourers have faced the most difficult time during the lockdown. Today, around 900 cases have emerged for the first time, I hope that as and when the cases keep on decreasing in the upcoming weeks, we will continue to unlock further. We want the economic activities to come back on track so that the economy can be revived," Kejriwal said.

'We will open up everything when the situation is under control': Delhi CM

Kejriwal said everything will be opened up and asked the traders to not rush, panic and assured them that when the situation will ease 

"I can understand the troubles of the traders and I can understand their anxiety. I read in the newspapers that they are a bit upset. I want to tell them that it was with great difficulty that we were able to control the situation by imposing a lockdown. They should be patient and should not rush. We also want their markets and shops to open up and as and when the situation comes under control, we will open up everything," he said.

(With PTI Inputs)

(Image Credits: PTI/REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE)