Get jabbed, become 'Baahubali': PM Modi
(Sourced from PTI)
The vaccine is given in the baahu (arm) and those who take it become Baahubali, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday and asserted that over 40 crore people have become Baahubali (strong) in the fight against coronavirus. Addressing reporters ahead of the start of the session, Modi also said that the inoculation program in the country was moving forward at a fast pace.
"The only way to become Baahubali to fight against corona is to get vaccinated," Modi said. The Prime Minister's remarks triggered reactions from netizens, who referred to the South Indian hit movie Baahubali which had a very strong protagonist. Tagging Modi's remarks, a Twitter user said, "Makes sense - there are 2 parts to Baahubali - dose 1 and dose 2."
"Coronavirus is like katappa and will attack again from behind. We can't be careless as in real life, there would be no sequel," tweeted another user, referring to another character in the two-part epic movie.
Modi said, "We want a discussion in the House as well as with all the floor leaders. I am constantly meeting the chief ministers and all kinds of discussions are happening in different forums." "So I also want to meet the floor leaders as House is going on and it will be convenient and we can talk about it (the pandemic) face-to-face," he said.
Noting that the pandemic has engulfed the whole world, Modi said a meaningful discussion regarding the pandemic is on high priority. Earlier this month, Modi chaired a high-level meeting to review the coronavirus situation and medical oxygen availability in India.
His statement comes at a time when several states including Delhi, are facing a vaccine shortage. According to media reports, even though over 22% of Indians have received at least one vaccine shot, just around 5.5% have been fully inoculated as yet. The central government, nonetheless, plans to vaccinate all adults by the end of this year.
Notably, the Centre has placed an order to procure 66 crore doses of Covishield and COVAXIN to be supplied between August and December this year, at a revised price of Rs. 205 and Rs. 215 per dose, respectively, excluding taxes. Nearly 37.5 crore of Covishield doses from SII and 28.5 crore COVAXIN doses from Bharat Biotech will be procured by December.
Notably, both houses of the parliament were adjourned early on the first day of the monsoon session of the parliament, due to protests by the opposition. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called the actions of the Congress party, the leading Opposition, "sad, unfortunate, unhealthy." Opposition parties protested against contentious farm laws, rising fuel prices, under-reporting of COVID-19 casualties, and the recent report about Pegasus spyware.
