Bihar Cabinet Approves Proposal of Free COVID-19 Vaccines for All

The proposal to provide free vaccines was part of Saat Nishchay Part-2, the second part of the CM’s seven resolves.

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar. Image used for representational purposes.

(Photo: PTI)  

At their first meeting since the constitution of the newly formed government, the Bihar state Cabinet on Tuesday, 15 December, approved a proposal to provide free COVID-19 vaccine to all the people of the state, PTI reported.

The proposal to provide free COVID vaccines was part of “Saat Nishchay Part-2", the second part of seven resolves of the chief minister. These reportedly set forth the blueprint for governance of the state, taking off from Kumar’s previous tenure. The vaccine is one of the health components of this blueprint.

According to PTI, other points covered in the blueprint include upgrading educational institutions and economic empowerment of the youth through measures such as establishing a separate department for skill development as well as the setting up of "mega skill centres" and "tool rooms" across all 38 districts.

A statement issued by the government after the Cabinet meet said that these measures are expected to create "20 lakh new jobs in government and private sectors", PTI reports.

BJP Promises Free COVID Vaccines

Ahead of the three-phased Bihar Assembly elections, BJP leader and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday, 22 October, stated that "as soon as the coronavirus vaccine will be available for production at a mass scale, every person in Bihar will get free vaccination."

This had provoked sharp reactions, with Opposition political parties and their leaders calling out "appalling cynicism", "blatant populism", and questioning what will happen in non-BJP-ruled states.

(With inputs from PTI.)