Vaccines scarcity in Kashmir exposes chasm between Govt claims, reality: PC

Srinagar, May 17, 2021: Former minister and senior Peoples Conference leader Syed Basharat Bukhari Monday asked the government to establish a constant contact with the aggrieved masses amid the prevalent health crises in Kashmir and address their mounting concerns pertaining to the acute shortage of COVID-19 vaccines.

Bukhari in a statement issued to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) said the situation merits the government’s thorough, constant and fervent attention and that the chaos prevalent on the ground has put the masses in dire straits.

“On the one hand the government is asking people to get vaccinated and on the other, they are turned away from the health centers in hordes due to the non-availability of vaccines. There is a deep chasm being witnessed between the government claims and reality on the ground. It is ironic to find that in the last four days, mere two hundred people per day in Kashmir have been vaccinated. The numbers are excruciating and at the same time telling as well. The dreadful surge in the COVID deaths in the region demands mass level immunization but there is serious incongruity being witnessed in the approach of those at the helm in administration,” Bukhari said.

He added that the acute dearth of vaccines in Kashmir has to be addressed on priority and that the administration must constitute special teams that could monitor the situation on the ground on an hourly basis. Bukhari said that there is a dire need for the government to become responsive about people’s woes and concerns and update them on regular basis about the measures being taken to address the crises.

“The communication wedge between the masses and the government is widening with each passing day. There is a need for transparent and long-term vaccination planning to avoid a catastrophe. The administration must, through a detailed consultative process, provide a timeline of how many vaccine doses are likely to be available over the next few weeks and months. Vaccine availability should not be a state secret. There should be complete clarity regarding this. The more people know where they stand, the better it is,” Bukhari added—(KNO)