Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has written to fellow Chief Ministers from other states urging them to join him in advocating for centralised procurement of vaccines.

“After the Union Government announced the Phase 3 pf vaccine policy and allowed for above 18 years and opened procurement to State governments and private sector, there has been great demand for vaccination from the citizens. Many states have floated global tenders for vaccine procurement. However, it is quite clear that global vaccine manufacturers are looking forward to the Union Government for clearances and assurances,” writes Patnaik.

He further explains, “They are unwilling to get into supply contracts with the State governments. While the domestic vaccine manufacturers are having supply constraints and are not able to commit required supplies.”

Patnaik says that under these circumstances “the best option available is for the Government of India to centrally procure the vaccines and distribute it among the States, so that our citizens are vaccinated at the earliest.”

However, Patnaik also advocates for a decentralized execution of the vaccination program saying, “States should be allowed flexibility to determine their own mechanisms to ensure universal vaccination.” He gave the example of hilly areas where online registration is often not possible due to poor internet connectivity, which necessitates the intervention of the state government to ensure even the most socio-economically backward tribal communities are not left out of the vaccination drive.

The Odisha CM’s letter may be read here: 

It is noteworthy that the Centre had allowed States to float global tenders and make arrangements for vaccine procurement. However, many states have been struggling to organise vaccines this way, and economically backward states have suffered the worst.

Mizoram’s plea for free vaccines for economically constrained states

Just yesterday, Mizoram CM Zoramthanga had written to the PM asking for free vaccines to be provided to 11 special category states which face severe economic constraints. “The pandemic puts serious stress on the resources of the country and this has far more severe impacts on small states with small resources like Mizoram. On top of this, we are now required to buy the vaccines for 18-44 years age group which puts more stress on our meagre resources,” CM Zoramthanga wrote in his letter that he shared on his official Twitter account tagging the PM, the Home Minister, and Chief Ministers of other North Eastern states. Zoramthanga requested that the Government of India “buy the entire vaccine requirements and make equitable distributions to all states.”

Humble request for special category states like us to be provided with vaccines free of charge by the Govt of India; to save our stressed economic resources!@narendramodi @AmitShah @himantabiswa @Neiphiu_Rio @NBirenSingh @SangmaConrad @PSTamangGolay @BjpBiplab @PemaKhanduBJP pic.twitter.com/W4cGRokZ4e

— Zoramthanga (@ZoramthangaCM) June 1, 2021

Mamata Banerjee on vaccine allocation and procurement challenges

Previously, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had also written to the Prime Minister asking him to prioritise vaccination for Central and State government employees saying, “They have been forced to face people, to mingle with the public for discharge of their duties. In the process, they are running the risk of being affected by Covid 19. It is important that they are vaccinated without delay and irrespective of age groups.” She had asked for at least 20 lakh doses to be sent to her state for the purpose.

In fact, Banerjee has been very vocal about price disparities in vaccines as this has posed a huge challenge for procurement by states. “Every Indian needs free vaccine, regardless of age, caste, creed, location. GoI must fix ONE price for Covid vaccine irrespective of who pays— Centre or the States,” she had tweeted.

One nation, one party, one leader shouts BJP all the time but to save lives they can’t have one price for vaccine.

Every Indian needs free vaccine, regardless of age, caste, creed, location. GoI must fix ONE price for Covid vaccine irrespective of who pays— Centre or the States.

— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) April 22, 2021

It is noteworthy that Covid-19 cases had shot through the roof in West Bengal after the conduct of the mammoth eight-phase Bengal Assembly Elections, a decision widely perceived to be driven by BJP’s single-minded desire to come to power in the state.

That’s not all. A Supreme Court Bench of Justices Chandrachud, Ravindra Bhat and L Nageswara Rao that is hearing a suo motu petition on Covid-19, In Re Distribution of Essential Services and Supplies During Pandemic, posed some serious questions to the Centre on its vaccine policy. “We are not changing the policy. We are asking you to please wake up and smell the coffee and see what’s happening across the country,” Justice Chandrachud had reportedly remarked. Justice Bhat also intervened and reportedly asked Tushar Mehta, “The only thing we want to address is the dual pricing policy. You are asking the States to pick up and compete with each other.”

Related:

SC questions Centre’s vaccine strategy
My goal is to save lives, not vaccines: Arvind Kejriwal
Covid-19: Which Indian states failed miserably in tackling the pandemic?

The post Odisha CM bats for centralised procurement of vaccines appeared first on SabrangIndia.

In the 2019 assembly elections, the BJD has managed to win/lead in  112 of the 146 seats with a vote share of 44.7%. Notably, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a former ally of BJD, succeeded in making inroads in the coastal state, thereby defeating the Indian National Congress (INC) as the second largest party. BJP, with a vote share of 32.5% and leading in 23 seats, will now be the opposition party. INC, which has been the main opposition party in Odisha until 2019, has seen one of its worst performance ever! With a vote share of just 16.1%, INC won only 9 of the 146 seats!

In 2014, the Congress was the main opposition, winning 16 seats. The BJP was placed third with 10 seats.

With the Modi-wave spread across the nation, there were speculations that Patnaik led BJD may face an anti-incumbency this time, but, this proved to be wrong. However, BJD’s performance has fallen compared to its previous terms which has proven to be beneficial for BJP, pushing Congress in the third place.

In his political career as Odisha’s CM, Patnaik, for the first time, contested from two seats- Hinjili, his home turf in south Odisha from where he has been winning since 2000, and Bijepur, in west Odisha.

Much of the BJD’s campaign was based on the popularity of Patnaik, who has launched multiple development schemes including pre-poll subsidy for farmers.

He has even enhanced the financial support to women, elderly and the poor through various welfare schemes and through direct grassroots engagement programmes like Peetha, Biju Yuva Vahini and Kalia. This came especially after BJP had a surprising gain in February, 2017 rural polls.

The people of Odisha have once again reposed their faith in Patnaik, after having him at the helm for 20 years.
 

The post Odisha reposes its faith in Naveen Patnaik, gives him his fifth term as CM appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Criminal background of candidates
84 of the 241 candidates, or 35%, have declared that they have criminal cases against them. 68 candidates, or 28% of the total analysed have “serious criminal cases” against them; per the report, these are defined as involving offences for which the maximum punishment is five years’ imprisonment or higher, non-bailable offences, electoral offences, offences related to losses to the exchequer, offences that are related to assault, murder, kidnap, or rape, offences that are mentioned in the Representation of the People Act, and offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

When considering political parties, 21 of 35 candidates analysed from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had criminal cases against them. This figure was 17 of 31 candidates analysed from the Indian National Congress (INC), or 53%. For candidates analysed from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), this number was 13 of 35, or 37%, and for Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) candidates analysed, it was four of 23, or 17%.

18 of 35 BJP candidates analysed, 10 of 32 INC candidates analysed, 11 of 35 BJD candidates analysed, and four of 23 BSP candidates have “serious criminal cases” against them. The ADR report has termed 14 constituencies “red alert constituencies,” because they have three or more candidates with criminal cases filed against them.

Financial background of candidates
13 of the 241 candidates (5%) analysed are worth Rs. 5 crores or more, while 24 (10%) are worth between Rs. 2 crores and Rs. 5 crores. The majority of the candidates are worth between Rs. 10 lakh and Rs. 2 crores. 61 (25%) candidates have assets worth between Rs. 10 lakh to Rs. 50 lakh, and 61 (25%) candidates have assets worth between Rs. 50 lakh and Rs. 2 crores. 82 (35%) candidates are worth Rs. 10 lakh.

The wealthiest candidate is current Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik of the BJD, with total assets worth more than Rs. 63 crores. According to ADR calculations, Narayan Vesra of the BSP has the lowest assets, at around Rs. 8,000. Naba Kishore Das of the BJD, who has declared the third highest assets (more than Rs. 33 crores), also has the highest liabilities, Rs. 21 crores.

Two independent candidates, Ananta Kanhar and Birendra Kumar Gouda, have declared that they have zero assets.

Of the 241 candidates analysed, 70, or 29%, are crorepatis, according the report. 21 of 35 BJD candidates, 20 of 35 BJP candidates, 13 of 32 INC candidates, and one of seven Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidates analysed have declared assets worth Rs. 1 crores or more.

Of the candidates analysed, the average assets per candidate for the BJD amount to Rs. 7.66 crores. This figure is Rs. 3.14 crores for the BJP, Rs. 1.17 crores for the INC, and Rs. 10.53 lakh for the BSP.

Candidates’ age, gender, and educational background
Per the ADR report, 15 candidates are aged between 25 and 30, and 42 candidates are aged between 31 and 40. The highest number of candidates–78–are aged between 41 and 50, and a significant portion–69–of the candidates are aged between 51 and 60. 31 candidates are aged between 61 and 70, with just five candidates aged between 71-80. One candidate has not provided their age.

47 candidates have said that they have passed the twelfth standard, and 39 candidates have said that they have passed the tenth standard. 53 candidates have declared themselves to be graduates, and 33 candidates have said they have professional graduate degrees. 32 candidates have declared that they have post-graduate degrees, and three candidates have said they have doctorates. Four candidates have declared that they are literate, and 18 candidates have said that they have passed the eighth standard.

Men make up the majority of the candidates in phase II of Odisha’s assembly elections; just 25 candidates of the 241 analysed, or 10.4%, are women.

The complete report may be read here:

The post Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik wealthiest candidate in phase II of assembly polls appeared first on SabrangIndia.