Failure on vaccines

Refusal to support private sector has led to a roll-out flop

The pandemic’s second wave is gathering strength throughout India, with the number of new cases a day now crossing 150,000. Several states, including the hardest-hit Maharashtra, are complaining about a shortage of vaccines. Meanwhile, India has also effectively stopped exports of vaccines, leading to crises in other countries. India was supposed to be the vaccine factory of the world. This is what the government promised, and what it has boasted about at intervals over the past month. The Union health ministry, however, is wasting time instead on blaming various state governments. The vaccine roll-out has been hampered by the Indian