The coronavirus vaccine will be made available free of cost to all people in Kerala, Chief
Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Saturday.
"No one will be charged for the vaccine. This is the stand of the government," Vijayan said. However, Vijayan also said that the quantity of the vaccine that would be allotted to the state by the Centre was not yet known.
"The fact is that the number of Covid-19 cases are decreasing, which is a matter of relief. However, it needs to be seen if the local body polls, two phases of which are over, would contribute to an increase in cases. That will be known only in the days to come," he said. If the cases do not increase, this trend (of cases declining) will continue, the chief minister added.
Kerala on Saturday recorded 5,949 Covid-19 cases and 32 deaths, taking the caseload to 6.64 lakh and the toll to 2,594. The state’s active caseload stood at 60,029.
Kerala is the latest state to announce free of cost Covid-19 vaccine for its residents. Earlier, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh governments made similar announcements.
Meanwhile, the Centre on Tuesday said that three Covid-19 vaccines being developed by Bharat Biotech, Serum Institute of India and Pfizer, are being considered by India's top drug regulator and an early license might be issued to the three firms.
At present, five vaccine candidates are under different phases of clinical trials in the country.
