In the Rajya Sabha on the 17th of September, Central Minister for Health and Family Welfare spoke on the status of the COVID-19 vaccines. He said that they may be available by early 2021 but it will take some time for the vaccines to reach all citizens.
In the Rajya Sabha, the Minister said, “We hope that we will get a COVID-19 vaccine by the beginning of the next year. We are also coordinating with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other bodies. India is among the few countries that have managed to isolate the virus. There are around 40,000 samples that are being studied.”
Congress MPs tried to corner the Modi Government regarding the COVID-19 situation and how the centre handled the situation.
Union Minister Harsh Vardhan, defended the Centre and drew comparisons with countries like the United States of America and Brazil. He said, “The number of cases as well as deaths in the US and Brazil is much higher in comparison to India. India’s recovery rate has also risen. Only America carried out more tests than us.”
He said that the government is trying to bring the mortality rate down to less than 1%.