Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday wrote Prime Minister Narendra Modi that with the Covid caseload surging, Kerala state would longer be able to supply oxygen to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, as was being done till now.

In a letter to Modi, Chief Minister said the state produces 219 metric tonnes of oxygen and given its huge daily requirement, it is in no position to give this outside the state anymore, and hence, it should be allowed to use it for its own needs. The reserve stock of 450 tonnes of oxygen has now come down to 86 tonnes and with cases continuing to rise, Kerala should be given exemption with regards to oxygen supplies, he demanded.

Kerala currently has 423,000 active Covid cases, and the daily test positivity rate is also at its peak of 28 per cent and given the spike, the total number of active cases is likely to cross five lakh very soon.

Kerala on Monday received 350,000 doses of Covishield vaccineto combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

An Indigo regular flight carrying the Covishield vaccine landed at Cochin International Airport at 11.50 AM, a CIAL spokesman said.

The state government has placed an order for over one crore doses of vaccine to accelerate the vaccination drive in the state.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said the COVID-19 vaccination drive for those in the age group of 18-45 would be prioritized in Kerala with people having comorbidities given preference.

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