In keeping with its ideals of serving the community, the Rotary Club of Madras took on the challenge of maintaining the cold chain of Covid vaccination in Tamilnadu with a donation of 1 crore worth of necessary equipment for viable transportation of Vaccines.
This Donation will ensure that “Vaccines reach people in every corner of Tamilnaduin its potent form.” The assets were handed over by the President of Rotary Club of Madras, KapilChitale to the Principal Secretary – Health and Family Welfare – Dr. T. Radhakrishnan IAS who will hand it over to the Director of Public Health and Hygiene Dr. Selvavinayagam
The ceremony took place at the Tamilnadu Government Multi Super Speciality Hospital, Omandurar Estate, Chennai on April 27, 2021.
Following are the assets that were handed over to the Govt. of Tamilnadu
* Two 14 ft refrigerated trucks with a total capacity of transporting 4500 liters of vaccine i.e. 44 lakh doses from the Central vaccine store to the Zonal vaccine stores.
* Two 8 ft refrigerated trucks with a total capacity of transporting 2000 liters i.e. 20 lakh doses of vaccine from the Zonal stores to the District stores.
* 15 Ice Lined refrigerators that can store 10 lakh doses of vaccines in the district stores.
* One thousand vaccine carriers that can be used to vaccinate up to 30 lakh people each time.
The donors – Cookson, Godrej, SRF Ltd., Vinayaka Mission Foundation, Omega Health Care, Rotary Club of Madhavaram, Rotary club of IT City, and members of Rotary Club of Madras were present at the handover ceremony.
This donation would go a long way in helping Tamil Nadu significantly ramp up its cold chain facilities. The safe delivery of vaccines for mass immunization against Covid-19 is a massive challenge.
Cold chain logistics involves many moving parts, including cold storage facilities that store products waiting to be transported and cooling systems to keep them at an appropriate temperature during all aspects of the supply chain such as storing and transporting. Unlike drugs, virtually all vaccines need to be transported at cold temperatures, usually between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius. The vaccines lose potency when exposed to a temperature higher than 8 degrees or lower than 2 degrees
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said earlier this week that the government expects to receive and utilize 400-500 million vaccine doses for Covid-19, and cover approximately 20-25 crore people by July 2021. It is imperative that Tamil Nadu like other states make a robust plan for vaccine storage and distribution by October 15. (NII).
While the Tamilnadu Govt has an established cold chain it is limited in capacity and the equipment is not geared to move the large quantities of vaccines that are required during the current pandemic. Therefore the current challenge for the state is to maintain Covid-19 vaccines strictly between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius, while in transport and storage until delivery.
The Rotary Club of Madras’ initiative is towards helping the Tamil Nadu Govt in meeting this need. This sizable donation is a first step towards fulfilling its commitment to the people of Tamil Nadu.
