BSP welcomes Covid-19 vaccination drive, says poor should be prioritised

Welcoming nationwide Covid-19 vaccination drive launched on Saturday, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) National Spokesperson Sudhindra Bhadoria on Sunday said poor people should be prioritised during inoculation.

"Corona crisis has been hitting the people of India and the world very hard. We welcome the corona vaccination drive. However, we must remember that India has a population of over 125 crores and 50 per cent of the people live around the poverty line. These are the people who deserve to be treated in priority and they should be vaccinated so that India as a nation together can march forward and progress," Bhadoria told ANI.

Talking about allegations made by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee that fewer vaccines were sent to her state, the BSP leader said politics should not be done over vaccines.

"This kind of politics should not be done. I think all should be treated equally whether they are coming from the BJP-ruled states or Opposition-ruled states. There should be no distinction in this matter," Bhadoria stated.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday rolled out the world's largest vaccination drive against the COVID-19 pandemic that has caused 1,52,093 deaths and affected millions of lives in the country.

The Union Health Ministry on Saturday said no case of post-vaccination hospitalisation has been reported so far and the drive was successful. Sanitation workers were the first to get the shots in Delhi and some other states.