India to give adults free COVID shots after bungled vaccine rollout, soaring deaths

FILE PHOTO: Doctor Brajpal Singh Tyagi (L) stands next to Usha Arya, 56, who is suffering from Mucormycosis, also known as black fungus, after performing endoscopic sinus surgery at Harsh ENT hospital in Ghaziabad, on the outskirts of New Delhi, India May 31, 2021. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India will provide free COVID-19 vaccines to all adults, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday, in an effort to rein in a pandemic that has killed hundreds of thousands and led to the world's second-highest tally of infections.

Modi's announcement on national television came after weeks of criticism of a bungled vaccine rollout that has covered fewer than 5% of India's estimated adult population of 950 million.