India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) in its experimental study released on Thursday, says that  Vaccinating all citizens above the age of 18 years against Covid-19 will cost Rs 67,193 crore, of which states together will incur Rs 46,323 crore.

As the second wave of Covid-19 sweeps the country with alarming speed and severity, the government has announced a liberalised and accelerated Phase 3 strategy of Covid19 vaccination. Under this scheme, all persons above 18 years of age will be eligible to get Covid-19 vaccine doses from May 1. "This means that the total size of the population that will now be eligible for vaccination would be 84.19 crore out of the total population of 133.26 crore," it said a note.

India Ratings calculated that this "may cost Rs 67,193 crore, of which the Union government will incur Rs 20,870 crore and state governments together will incur Rs 46,323 crore". The total of the two comes to Rs 67,193 crore which "works out to be just 0.36 per cent of GDP," it noted.

The government has made the pricing, procurement, eligibility and administration of coronavirus vaccines flexible. While the vaccination drive will continue as before, providing free vaccination to priority populations such as healthcare workers, frontline workers and population above 45 years of age, states and Union territories have been allowed to procure additional COVID-19 vaccine doses directly from the manufacturers and open-up vaccination to people above the age of 18 years.

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