Amid COVID-19 vaccine spat, Maharashtra tops with 93 lakh jabs

People at NESCO vaccination centre in Goregaon East, Mumbai. Pic/Anurag Ahire

Amid a major 'vaccine-war' with the Centre, it has emerged that Maharashtra continues to fly high in terms of the inoculation drive despite having nearly-exhausted its stocks, officials said here on Friday.

As per the latest data released for April 9 (today), the state has administered the highest 93,38,531 jabs, comprising 84,35,010 first doses and 903,521 second doses, making it the best performer in the national vaccination programme, officials pointed out.

The state is followed by Rajasthan with 88,07,351 vaccinations comprising 77,72,197 first jabs and 10,35,194 second doses.

Next is Gujarat with 84,75,305 vaccinations including 75,01,404 first doses and 973,901 second jabs.

In the past two days, the Centre and Maharashtra have been engaged in a bitter war of words with the latter accusing the former of 'stepmotherly treatment' for the state which is worst-hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Top leaders of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government and Shiv Sena-Nationalist Congress Party-Congress said that the Centre has not given sufficient numbers of vaccines to Maharashtra but was allegedly concentrating on Gujarat and other states ruled by Bharatiya Janata Party.

Lashing out at the MVA, BJP's Leader of Opposition Fadnavis said on Thursday evening that the vaccines' "supply is not on the basis of population but purely based on state's performance of execution of vaccination process".

Refuting the MVA leaders' contentions, Fadnavis also pointed out that only three states -- Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan -- have been given over 1-crore doses by the Centre.

While Maharashtra has a population of 12 crore, Gujarat and Rajasthan each have around 6 crore population, and the latter is ruled by Congress, he said.

As per the current figures, Uttar Pradesh ranks fourth with 81,45,161 vaccinations notched till date, comprising 69,51,956 first jabs and 11,93,205 second doses.

At the bottom of the list are less-populated smaller territories like Lakshadweep Islands (10,737), Union Territory of Daman & Diu (28,441), Andaman & Nicobar Islands (30,799), and Union Territory of Dadra & Nagar Haveli (31,851).

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