In what has become a sudden setback in the significant measure of battling the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chennai Corporation has suspended the vaccination drive in the city for June 28 after the dearth of the vaccine doses. The shortage of vaccines had come after the city has utilized all the stock it had received four days ago.

The website of the Greater Chennai Corporation has on Sunday mentioned that there would not be any vaccination on June 28 and the drive will resume after the vaccine doses arrive from the makers. The officials say that the city hadn't received the vaccine stock on Sunday and the balance stock was utilized by the medical officers in the Urban Community Health Centers on Sunday. 

The authorities expect that some stock of vaccine doses will arrive in the evening hours of Monday, post which the drive will resume. Speaking to a Tamil news agency, Tamil Nadu Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan has said that 2 lakh Covishield doses are expected to reach Tamil Nadu by Monday and the government has also appealed to the Union government to increase the number of doses to Tamil Nadu. 

The state had earlier this month faced a shortage of vaccines and the Union government had dispatched the vaccine doses post which the drive has got enhanced. The civic body had itself administered 39,366 vaccines on June 25, which was the second-highest in Tamil Nadu in a single day since the commencement of the vaccination drive. 

According to reports, the Chennai Corporation has been carrying out the vaccination through 45 vaccination centres and 19 urban community health centres. The civic body has been conducting special vaccine drives in crowded places including markets as part of its outreach. On the other hand, the civic body will on Monday be launching the special vaccination drive for advocates and staff members of the Madras High Court.