More than 44 lakh COVID-19 vaccine doses wasted till April 11, Kerala and West Bengal show zero wastage

New Delhi, Apr 20: Amid crisis over coronavirus vaccine in India, more than 44 lakh doses of COVID-19 vaccines were wasted in India till April 11, while states like Kerala and West Bengal showed zero wastage as per the data shared by Health Ministry.

According to the RTI filed by Vivek Pandey, the information reveals that a total of 44.78 lakh doses were wasted out of the total 10.34 crores doses used in several states of India till April 11 this year.

The dose wastage has been highest in Tamil Nadu, where 12 out of 100 vaccine doses were wasted, followed by Haryana, which wasted nearly 9 out of 100 doses. Meanwhile, Punjab, Manipur and Telangana have wasted nearly 8 out of 100 doses each in the state.

The RTI also showed that the state and union territories of Kerala, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Goa, Daman and Diu, Andaman and Nicobar Island and Lakshadweep have shown zero vaccine wastage.

Among the top vaccination states, Maharashtra wasted only about 3.2 per cent (3.56 lakh) of the total vaccine consumption, the state has vaccinated more than 99 lakh beneficiaries.

The state of Rajasthan has seen wastage of nearly 6 per cent of doses (6.10 lakh) and has vaccinated more than 95 lakh beneficiaries.