Coronavirus: COVID-19 cases have been rising in Maharashtra
There is no COVID-19 vaccination slot available till July, a petitioner told the Bombay High Court today in a hearing on how the state is tackling the deadly second wave of the pandemic.
A bunch of petitions are being heard in the high court, from looking into fire at hospitals treating Covid patients to long queues outside vaccination centres, which are at odds with safety guidelines like the need for social distancing.
"As far as the vaccine is concerned, there are no slots available till July. After waiting in line for hours, there is a board put up saying they are out of stock. For four days I'm running pillar to post trying to get an appointment," Arshil Shah, the petitioner's lawyer, told the high court.
The high court replied something has to be done to avoid long queues for vaccination. "You can give time slots so that all people don't flock at the same time for vaccination," a division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice GS Kulkarni said.
"There is some problem at the ground level. Those who have taken Covaxin have been asked to wait as there was short supply and they had to prioritise giving the second dose," the Chief Justice said, before ordering the centre and the state government to give their replies on the petitions.
The high court said hospitals of the municipal bodies of Mumbai and Pune where Covid patients are being treated should be checked for fire safety. "There needs to be fire audit compliance in every hospital and nursing home," the high court said.
The court also observed that a majority of Parsis are over 70 and they might have difficulty in reaching inoculation centres.
"Serum Institute of India chief Adar Poonawalla had said he would keep a quota for the Parsis, but the community has said there is no need for quota," Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni said.
High courts in other states like Delhi and Tamil Nadu have also been hearing petitions on Covid management and shortage of medical oxygen.
Maharashtra on Wednesday night reported a record high of 985 Covid deaths - a 10 per cent increase from a day ago. The state also reported 63,309 new cases - a 5 per cent drop since Tuesday. The active Covid cases are now over 6.73 lakh.
The surge in Covid cases in recent weeks have led to what is now being called a deadlier second wave of the pandemic. Social media is full of stories of desperate people trying to find oxygen or a hospital bed for their friends and family.
More and more people this time are complaining of breathlessness, which needs oxygen support. However, the supply of oxygen has become severely limited due to the sudden jump in demand across cities and towns. Only now the centre is running "Oxygen Express" trains carrying tankers to states worst hit by Covid.