Chidambaram on India giving 2.5 crore Covid jabs: 'Why did we have to wait until the PM’s birthday?'

New Delhi, Sep 18: Former Union Minister P Chidambaram has slammed the BJP asking why the party waited till Prime Minister Narendra Modi's birthday to carry out the massive Covid-19 vaccination drive. India, on Friday, created history by administering over 2.5 crore jabs on the occasion of Modi's birthday.

The Congress leader welcomed the BJP's drive and tweeted, "Happy and grateful that 2.5 crore vaccinations were administered yesterday But why did we have to wait until the PM's birthday? [sic]"

He added, "Suppose the PM's birthday was on December 31st, would the 2.5 crore vaccinations have been done only on the last day of the year? Vaccination is not like cutting a cake on a birthday. [sic]"

The former Union Home Minister stated that the vaccination programme is not a process to peak on a birthday. He reminded that only 21 per cent of people have received both doses. Chidambaram added, "Vaccination is a programme, it is a process. It has to be accelerated every day, not scale a peak on a birthday. Sobering thoughts: a) one third of the adult population has yet to receive its FIRST dose. b) only 21% has been FULLY vaccinated."

India created history by giving over 2.50 crore Covid-19 jabs in a single day. Bihar administered 29,38,653 doses till 11.20 pm, giving a major push to the inoculation drive on the occasion of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 71st birthday. It is followed by Karnataka (28.90 lakh), Uttar Pradesh (27.15 lakh), Madhya Pradesh (26.44 lakh), and Gujarat (23.37 lakh). It has to be noted that big numbers are posted by all the BJP-ruled states.

However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it was an unforgettable and emotional moment for him as over 2.50 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses were administered in the country on his 71st birthday.

"With your efforts, India has created a world record of administering over 2.5 crore vaccines in a single day, a feat not even the most powerful nations have been able to achieve," Modi said during an interaction via video link with healthcare workers and beneficiaries in the coastal state.

"We saw how the nation kept looking at CoWIN dashboard yesterday. Over 15 lakh vaccinations per hour, over 26,000 vaccinations every minute took place yesterday. Over 425 people were administered vaccines each second," the PM added.