Will provide COVID-19 vaccine free of cost once ready: MP CM

Bhopal, Oct 22: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday announced that once the coronavirus vaccine gets ready, it would be administered to all the people in the state free of cost.

The announcement comes ahead of the November 3 bypolls to 28 assembly seats in the state, the outcome of which will decide the fate of the current government.

"We have taken effective steps to protect the people from COVID-19. Today it is effectively under control. Work on making a vaccine for corona is going on at a fast pace in the country.

The moment it is ready, it will be provided free of cost to each and every person of Madhya Pradesh," Chouhan said in a tweet in Hindi.

A total of 1,64,341 people have tested positive in Madhya Pradesh so far, of whom 2,842 have died. However, 1,49,353 patients have recovered from the infection, the health officials have said.