The central government asked the Government of Maharashtra to ensure all the healthcare workers to undergo H1N1 vaccination mandatorily, following an outright refusal from a majority of the public healthcare workers in the state to vaccinate voluntarily against swine flu fearing possible side effects.

The decision of central ministry of health and family welfare to make the vaccination of doctors and paramedics in the state mandatory, as the Government of Maharashtra has informed the ministry that the response to Pandemic H1N1 vaccination from doctors and paramedical workers is not satisfactory.

"A voluntary approach was used to vaccinate health care workers. Government of India has written to Government of Maharashtra emphasizing the urgency and has advised to State to make it mandatory to ensure that health care workers are vaccinated," said Ghulam Nabi Azad, Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, in the Parliament this week.

The Centre has supplied almost 34,300 doses of Tamiflu vaccine for the state of Maharashtra from its total purchase order, placed with the French drug maker Sanofi Pasteur, of 1.5 million doses for the entire country, mainly to immunise the doctors and paramedical workers.

The Government of Maharashtra proposed to return 30,000 doses of the unutilized vaccine, out of 34,300 doses of vaccine supplied to the state, since there were a few healthcare workers willing to get vaccinated doubting its effectiveness and possible side-effects.

Maharashtra is reportedly one of the states which has suffered worst from the swine flu disease, as available reports show that more than 450 deaths occurred due to the disease in the since August 2009. Another wave of H1n1 swine flu infection is expected emerge as the virus could become more active during the monsoon.