UP floats global tender for 40 million vaccines

Virendra Singh Rawat

Lucknow / May 6, 2021

 

With targetted free inoculation of 90 million people in the 18-45 year age bracket, the Uttar Pradesh government has floated a global tender for procuring 40 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine.

 

This is in addition to the order of 10 million doses, 5 million each to Bharat Biotech and Serum Institute of India (SII), which was placed by the state government recently.

 

The short term global tender has been floated by state agency UP Medical Supply Corporation Limited (UPMSCL). The state government had been asked by the Centre to directly negotiate with the manufacturers with regards to pricing and supply.

 

According to the e-tender notice, the companies could submit bids from May 7 to 21, while the tendering process would be governed as per the central government guidelines.

 

Apart from the global tender and the order of 10 million vaccines placed with the two Indian companies, UP will also receive additional vaccines from the Centre for the ongoing vaccination programme.

 

Currently, 85 vaccination centres across 7 districts, which account for the maximum load of active coronavirus cases in UP, have been set up to inoculate the beneficiaries in the 18-45 year group. These districts are Lucknow, Kanpur City, Prayagraj (Allahabad), Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Meerut and Bareilly.

 

Later, it would cover other vaccination centres in UP across the remaining 68 districts as well.

 

So far, the state has set up about 2,500 vaccination centres across 75 districts for all the targetted categories.

 

So far, more than 10.5 million people have been administered about 13 million first and second doses in the state.