Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday said that COVID-19 vaccines will be free of cost in the state, reported PTI. Kerala now becomes the third state to announce free of cost vaccines, after Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh. 

Vijayan said, “No one will be charged for the vaccine. This is the stand of the government.”

The Centre announce on Tuesday that three COVID-19 vaccines, developed by Bharat Biotech, Serum Institute of India and Pfizer, are under active consideration of India’s drug regulator and there is hope that early licensure is possible for all or any of them.

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According to Vijayan,  the quantity of the vaccine that would be allotted to the state by the Centre was not yet known.

He said, “The fact is that the number of COVID-19 cases are decreasing, which is a matter of relief. However, it needs to be seen if the local body polls, two phases of which are over, would contribute to increase in cases. That will be known only in the days to come.”

He further added that if the cases do not increase, this trend (of cases declining) will continue.

 5,949 COVID-19 cases and 32 deaths were recorded in Kerala on Saturday, taking the caseload to 6.64 lakh and the toll to 2,594. The active cases stood at 60,029.