As the COVID-19 vaccination drive in India set to roll out soon, Serum Institute of India (SII) officials confirmed that it has received a purchase order for its vaccine Covishield from the central government.
“We have received the (purchase) order from the Government of India on Monday afternoon,” a senior SII official told PTI.
Reports had stated that the delay over the order was due to the Centre’s negotiation with SII to lower the price of each vaccine shot.
The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is priced at Rs 200 per shot and with GST of Rs 10, it would cost Rs 210, stated SII which has already stockpiled 50 million doses for India. Dispatch of the vaccine is likely to start by late Monday evening, they said.
Earlier, Modi government had informed that India is all set to kick off the much-awaited vaccination drive against Covid-19 on January 16, 2021.
While interacting with the CMs of the states on Monday, PM Modi said, “Health workers – govt as well as private – will be vaccinated first of all. Sanitation workers, other frontline workers, defence forces, Police and other paramilitary forces will also be vaccinated in the first phase.
The Drugs Controller General of India (DGCI) had earlier this month given restricted emergency use approval for Serum Institute of India’s Covishield and Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin. With these two vaccines, India is set to kickstart the world’s biggest Covid-19 vaccination drive with an aim to inoculate 300 million people at most risk of infection and death by August.
After vaccinating healthcare and frontline workers, priority will be given to those above 50 years of age and the under-50 population groups with co-morbidities, together numbering around 27 crore.
This will require around 600 million doses of vaccine and Serum Institute, the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines, has already stockpiled 50 million doses for immediate distribution.
The dry runs for the vaccines have been conducted almost all across all districts of the country.
