In a bid to fight the unprecedented Covid-19 crisis, Maharashtra Cabinet, on Wednesday, decided to provide free Covid-19 vaccination to all citizens aged between 18-44 years. Announcing the decision, Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) Maharashtra, took to the microblogging site Twitter and wrote: “Today, the Cabinet under the leadership of Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has decided to provide free Covid-19 vaccination to all citizens of Maharashtra aged between 18-44 years.”
The commencement of the vaccination program in the state will be announced as per vaccine supply. According to the officials, discussions have been held with Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat, Health Minister Rajesh Tope, and all other key colleagues in this regard. The Chief Minister said that despite the current financial crisis in the state, the health of the citizens is the top priority and that is why the decision to provide free vaccines to all the people between the ages of 18 and 44 was taken at the state cabinet meeting.
The State authorities have assured that they are trying to get as many vaccines as possible. Vaccines from Serum and Bharat Biotech are currently available, and in consultation with them, more and more vaccines will be made available. Also, The Chief Minister has instructed the administration to ensure that there is no hindrance in planning the vaccination program for the age group of 18 to 44 years.
Before inoculation, registration on the CoWin portal app is mandatory. “Citizens in this age group should register on the CoWin mobile app and not rush to vaccination centres anywhere,” said the official. The Chief Minister has also said that soon he will get proper and clear instructions regarding vaccination and the information will be disseminated among the people.
