Vaccination centres in Lahore to remain closed on Sunday

Lahore’s coronavirus vaccination centers will remain closed on Sunday, announced the city’s deputy commissioner on Saturday.

“The public is informed that all vaccination centers in the city will be closed on Sunday. Therefore, all citizens of Lahore are requested not to visit any vaccination center tomorrow (Sunday),” said DC Lahore in a Twitter message.

However, he did not explain the reason behind the closure. The development comes amid reports that Pakistan is facing a shortage of Covid-19 vaccines.

Earlier this month, authorities in Lahore closed a few vaccination centers. Recently, the Punjab government increased the number of coronavirus vaccination centers to 657 in the province, including 57 in Lahore.

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Vaccine shortages are also being reported in other parts of the country, including Karachi, Islamabad, and Rawalpindi.

On June 20, a special plane carrying 1.55 million doses of the Sinovac vaccine reached Islamabad from China. The National Command and Control Centre (NCOC) in a statement said that the batch was part of the "planned contracted quantity purchased from China".

Covid-19 vaccine shortage disrupts vaccination process

Pakistan is mainly relying on Chinese vaccines to push its inoculation drive.

Earlier this month, Pakistan launched the locally-produced Chinese CanSino Covid-19 vaccine to fulfill its needs and ensure self-reliance.