Chidambaram needs state governments to haggle over vaccine prices

P. Chidambaram, former Union Minister and senior Congress chief, has managed to give you one other spectacularly braindead thought that doesn’t make any sense. It is sort of possible that even he’s keenly conscious that his suggestion will trigger nice hurt if carried out.
Chidambaram urged that states ought to come collectively to reject the costs for the Covid-19 vaccines which have been set. He urged {that a} worth negotiation committee should be fashioned collectively by the states and a uniform worth might be negotiated. He is mainly asking state governments to unionise to haggle over vaccine costs.
Chidambaram’s grand dumb thought
Chidambaram stated additional, “The joint purchasing power of the State governments will force the manufacturers to agree to a uniform price States must take the initiative. The central government has abdicated its responsibility and surrendered to corporate profiteering.”
The complete propaganda by opposition events started after the Serum Institute of India introduced the value of its Covid-19 vaccine for state governments and personal hospitals. For the previous, the value has been pegged at Rs. 400 per dose whereas for the latter, it’s Rs 600.
There are a number of apparent flaws with the argument. Firstly, there’s a uniform worth for all of the states. It is with the central authorities that the states have a distinction in the price of Covid-19 vaccines and that too, just for a restricted variety of doses.
The opposition events and entertainers accused the SII of profiteering from the disaster. In actuality, the price of Covid-19 vaccines in India is extraordinarily low and it’s a lot larger in different nations. For occasion, the price of Moderna and Pfizer vaccines vary from Rs. 2000 to Rs. 3000 per dose.
Currently, the SII is promoting the vaccines at Rs. 150 per dose to the central authorities, incurring a loss within the course of. The price has been set to Rs. 150 for the primary 110 million doses and following that, the centre might be charged Rs. 400 as properly.
Even underneath such circumstances, opposition events are making a ruckus over the value. It is weird to anticipate a pharmaceutical firm to proceed to produce vaccines at a worth the place they’re incurring losses. The enterprise is unsustainable if this continues. They additionally must pay royalty to AstraZeneca as properly.
Nevertheless, Chidambaram first invents a false bogey of a worth differential between the centre and states after which recommends an much more weird thought. Firstly, SII can not provide vaccines at a good cheaper price and proceed to stay viable commercially.
Secondly, it doesn’t make sense politically for states to embark upon such a misadventure. Forming a committee to barter costs means an inevitable delay within the procurement of vaccine doses. A delay in vaccine procurement will immediately translate into jeopardising the well being of their residents. Consequently, such a delay will replicate extraordinarily poorly on the states for haggling over costs which can be already extraordinarily low.
Furthermore, states the place BJP is in energy won’t be on board with such theatrics. States can proceed to offers vaccines to its residents totally free, as many states have already introduced, however for that, they must procure the vaccines on the designated costs.
The BJP is at present in energy in 17 states or Union Territories, that’s, states the place they’re both the primary ruling celebration or are in a ruling alliance. That leaves solely 14 others the place opposition events are nonetheless in management. Even amongst them, it’s unlikely that the YSRCP authorities in Andhra Pradesh, the KCR Government in Telangana or the Naveen Patnaik authorities in Odisha will associate with such harebrained concepts.
Then there’s President’s Rule at present imposed in Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry. That leaves solely 9 states and Union Territories the place the the governments could also be keen to come back collectively to kind the value negotiation committee as urged by Chidambaram. Even Delhi is unlikely to get on board with the proposal contemplating the strain Arvind Kejriwal is in already.
Will they danger dropping huge public assist haggling over Covid-19 costs? It seems extraordinarily unlikely. The failure by the states to obtain vaccines for his or her residents will replicate immediately on the federal government’s efficiency in states. Any delay will construct angst in the direction of the federal government regardless of their posturing on social media.
Thus, whereas Chidambaram maintains a pretense of grave seriousness whereas dispensing the suggestion, it’s unlikely to obtain assist even from states the place his celebration is in energy. He additionally seems to have forgotten that procuring vaccines will not be like shopping for groceries from the market the place individuals really feel entitled to demand chilies value Rs. 5 for each buy value Rs. 100.