Bengaluru, Jun 8 (IANS): Congress would expand its free vaccination drive across Karnataka by involving its various wings, so as to protect as many people as possible from Covid, its state President D.K. Shivakumar said on Monday.

"Our party's frontal wings, including Kisan Congress, Youth Congress, Mahila Congress, student wing NSUI, and INTUC have been mobilised to expand our vaccination drive across the state to inoculate as many people as possible," he told reporters here.

The opposition party on June 4 launched its mass free vaccination drive at Davangere.

DK Shivakumar

"As we plan to vaccinate about 3 lakh people in the first phase of our Covid relief campaign, our party leaders and cadres are procuring Covishield doses with their personal funds. We are holding camps in towns and villages across the state to immunise more people," Shivakumar said.

Senior Congress leader Shamanur Shivashankarappa, 89, has placed an order to procure vaccines worth Rs 4 crore to inoculate people in his Davangere assembly constituency.

"As the BJP government in the state has been unresponsive and indifferent to the people's plight, I have appealed to our party's leaders and cadres to help the citizens in this pandemic times," Shivakumar said.

He also flagged off three dedicated ambulances equipped with oxygen concentrators under the 'Sanjeevani' scheme and distributed ration kits to about 500 Covid-affected families in the city.

"We are already operating 172 ambulances to rush Covid patients to hospitals across the state for treatment under the 'Congress Cares campaign," he said.

Shivakumar again urged the state government to allow them to buy vaccines worth Rs 100 crore to freely vaccinate the maximum number of people across the southern state.

The party has sought the state's permission to utilise the local area development funds of its MPs and MLAS for purchasing vaccines to fulfil its campaign.