Covid Vaccine: VIPs Start Jostling To Be On The First List
Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.
View all posts by this Author
By Linus Garg
First publised on 2020-12-04 10:18:44
About the Author
Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.
View all posts by this Author
It is disgusting that even before any thing is clear about how, when and at what price India will get the Covid vaccine, people have started the process to ensure that their name is on an early list of those who will get vaccinated on a priority basis. Those who are doing it are the usual suspects - politicians, bureaucrats and policemen.
Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope was forced to make a statement that no such 'VIP' will receive the first shots. He said though some bureaucrats had complained about pressure from these VIPs, he has not received a complaint directly. He said that all district authorities have been informed to get directly in touch with him if they get pressurized.
Tope said that only frontline workers (doctors, health workers, security personnel and others) will receive the first shots as per the list being prepared by the government. That is as it should be. Frontline workers are the ones who are facing the brunt of the pandemic. They are the one who kept India running during the lockdown. They need to be protected first.
Although this news has come from Maharashtra, one is sure that the same thing is going on all across the country. The Centre and all state governments must ensure that no one is allowed to jump the queue regardless of how rich, influential or well-connected they are. They must also ensure that the vaccination is equally distributed and not loaded in favour of urban or semi-urban areas. Ideally, those who can afford should be made to pay for it but it is for the government to decide if it wishes to inoculate everyone out of state funds.
Given the way the rich and famous behave in India, one is sure there will not be many takers for the vaccine the government chooses for free inoculation. The rich will go for the Pfizer vaccine and ensure that it reaches them from the UK packed in containers that keep it chilled at minus 70 degrees. That, for them, will be the ultimate high and give them bragging rights.
