Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has urged the Centre to identify international pharmaceutical companies to make Covid vaccines and have them imported on a war footing, promising land in Bengal for any manufacturing facility that may be required to be set up.

"Production of vaccines in the country is extremely inadequate... Globally, there are many manufacturers now... it is possible to identify the reputed and authentic manufacturers and speedily import vaccines from them from different parts of the world. Liberal, pro-active and discerning vaccination is the paramount need today,” Mamata said in a letter to Narendra Modi on Wednesday, her missive coming amid a vaccine crisis that has undermined the country’s fight against the coronavirus the spread of which in its second wave has overwhelmed India's health infrastructure.

. “…If we could encourage the world players to open up franchise operations in our country. Even the national players could be inspired to go for the franchise mode for the bulk production of vaccines. We, in West Bengal, are ready to provide land and support for any manufacturing/franchisee operation for authentic vaccine manufacturing," Mamata said in her letter to Modi.

“About 10 crore people in West Bengal and 140 core people in the country need vaccination here and now. But only a microscopic percentage has been covered,” the chief minister said.

As of 7 am on Wednesday, the Union health ministry said that a total of 4,79,282 beneficiaries in the age group of 18-44 years had received their first dose of the vaccine in the last 24 hours and cumulatively 30,44,463 across 30 states and UTs since the start of the phase-3 of vaccination drive.

On Tuesday, there were 3,48,421 new Covid cases recorded in the country. While the Centre and the state government announced universal vaccination for those above 18, no bookings for vaccines are available in any of the hospitals in Calcutta. On social media, residents of other cities too have been complaining about the non-availability of vaccines.

A Twitter user who goes by the name of Raj tweeted, “Can anyone please help to know that COVID vaccine is available for 18+ in Tamil Nadu and in my place Nagercoil. Called up maximum hospital everyone is saying no stock no supply.”

On the same day, Tamil Nadu chief minister M.K. Stalin said in Chennai, 13 lakh vaccines allocated for 18-45 years olds weren't enough and the TN government would float global tender s to import vaccines.

Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia also complained about vaccine “mismanagement by the Centre.”

“Covaxin refuses to supply vaccine citing directives of government and limited availability. Once again I would say exporting 6.6 crore doses was the biggest mistake. We are forced to shut down 100 Covaxin-vaccination sites in 17 schools due to no supply,” Sisodia tweeted.

Last August, the Centre constituted a National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19 to monitor the entire process from conception to inoculation. The recommendations of the expert group were never made public.

The Centre had placed its first orders as late as in January 2021 and has since then been busy patronising religious gatherings like the Kumbh Mela and an election campaign in Bengal that ran for eight phases coinciding with an upward spike of Covid cases.

In Calcutta, only two private hospitals have stocks of the first dose of vaccines, while the second dose is available only in government hospitals.

Though Mamata had announced the state government would start vaccination for those between 18 and 45 from May 5, the programme is yet to take off.

According to sources, the Bengal government will start vaccination for those above 18 only when the vaccine supply is “comfortable”. Till then it will focus on those above 45 needing the first or second dose.

Serum Institute of India, the makers of the Covishiled vaccine, has told most private vaccination centres that doses won’t be available till July. Its CEO Adar Poonawalla said in a statement on Monday: “Vaccine manufacturing is a specialised process. It is therefore not possible to ramp up production overnight. We also need to understand that the population of India is huge and to produce enough doses for all adults is not an easy task.”