The injunction, granted till August 19, follows a request to the effect by the state government undertaking Haffkine Bio-Pharmaceutical Corporation.

The stay comes close on the heels of an interim order by the Mumbai high court terming the reasons cited by the health department on the allegedly controversial vaccine purchase as "totally extraneous and unconnected with the nature of dispute".

The court's observation follows a writ petition filed by Haffkine, alleging gross irregularities by the health department while allocating 1,351 lakh doses of the vaccine to Radicura. Haffkine had sought a probe through an appropriate criminal investigating agency into the purchase in 1997-98.

"After going through the affidavit and noting the reasons mentioned, we are not at allimpressed by the same. ``The reasons given are totally extraneous and are unconnected with the nature of dispute and seek to find fault with the petitioner (Haffkine) on the issues over which the petitioner has no control," chief justice MB Shah and justice Jagirdhar observed in their interim ruling.

The court has also directed the secretary, ministry of health and family welfare to "personally look into the matter and take an appropriate decision with cogent reasons on or before August 17, 1998 ".

Haffkine claims that the latest 2,000-lakh polio vaccine order to Radicura and Bibcol (1,000 lakh doses each) tantamount to contempt of court. The Mumbai high court had, in an interim order on July 8, asked the health department to consider accepting 600 lakh doses of the vaccine from Haffkine, provided it fulfilled all the requisite conditions.

On July 22, the health department had, however, expressed its inability to place an order, claiming that certain conditions were unfulfilled. The department's counselhad stated that the department will finalise a rational criteria for allocation of purchase quantities and also carry out assessments of installed capacities through an independent agency before finalising the contract for 1998-99.

The Mumbai-based firm has alleged that the health department's statement that supply orders have been placed, taking into account the installed capacity, was false and irresponsible.

Haffkine has claimed that while it was allocated 51 per cent of the total vaccine order in 1995-96 and 42 per cent in 1996-97, in 1997-98 this was arbitarily reduced to 21 per cent. This had resulted in huge carry over stocks with the Mumbai-based corporation.

"If the arithmetical means of these two calculations is considered, Haffkine ought to have received allocation of at least 990.45 lakh doses in 1997-98. This works out to a shortfall of at least 540.50 lakh doses," the firm argues. The department, however, had purchased 2,130 lakh doses of the vaccine, of which Haffkine's share was just 450lakh doses (21 per cent) leaving a stock of 600 lakh doses.

Haffkine has alleged that the department, wilfully and with malafide intentions, neglected and failed to follow the same criteria which it presumably followed previously and adds that it deserves to be compensated for at least 540.50 lakh doses (27.03 lakh vials, each of 20 doses). It is also pointed out that, during the same period, Radicura's share in the total installed capacity rose from 47 per cent to 64 per cent.