COLOMBO: Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi told Parliament yesterday that the Government is hopeful of vaccinating 63% of the total population of the country by year end.
Joining the debate on the current COVID pandemic situation, the Health Minister said the vaccination drive was underway currently and that the second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine is being administered to all health and frontline workers.
She said the Government had ordered 13 million doses of the Sputnik V vaccine from Russia, of which 15,000 doses were received in Sri Lanka yesterday. She added that the rest would be received in batches.
The Minister also stated that agreements have been reached with vaccine manufacturers for the supply of the AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines which are expected to reach the country during this year.
Although the Government had set a target of vaccinating 60% of the population, it has been able to go beyond that, she said, adding that the Government has promised to provide the required number of additional vaccines as soon as the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine is approved by the WHO. “The vaccination drive in Sri Lanka is on par with developed countries.”
Minister Wanniarachchi said the Government was taking all possible steps to control the COVID pandemic while protecting the lives of the people. Measures were being taken to maintain the living standards of the low-income people and keep the country’s economy stable.
With this aim, the Government had provided an allowance of Rs. 5,000 to the low income families to sustain them during the pandemic. “It is ironic that even Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa who talks so much about the low income families, had forgotten about them when raising issues regarding the COVID pandemic.”
Commenting on the steps taken by the Government to control the third wave of COVID-19 in the country, the Minister said that 13,800 hospital beds have been reserved for COVID patients, noting that within the next two weeks a further 10,000 beds would be added.
Minister Wanniarachchi noted that the current Oxygen production in the country is around 23 tonnes, but there is a possibility to increase it to around 80 tonnes. She said the issue in India was that there is a shortage of Oxygen cylinders.
