Maharashtra demands 12 crore doses of Covishield from Serum Institute
India | April 27, 2021 15:32 ISTMaharashtra has demanded 12 crore vaccine doses of Covishield from the Serum Institute of India.
Maharashtra has demanded 12 crore vaccine doses of Covishield from the Serum Institute of India.
Once available, Sputnik V will be the third vaccine to be used in India against coronavirus. The other two vaccines are Covaxin and Covishield.
The move has come days ahead of India's planned drive to inoculate all aged above 18. The vaccination drive is set to begin May 1.
The pre-clinical trial of the nasal Covid-19 vaccine candidate, BBV154 has already started. If all goes as expected, the clinical trial would be completed by June and it could become available in the market by August.
White House National Security Advisor to US President Joe Biden, Jake Sullivan on Sunday spoke to Indian counterpart Ajit Doval and agreed to deploy more supplies, resources, raw material for Covishield vaccine production in India.
The Biden administration has come under criticism from several quarters, including from members and supporters of the Democratic party, for not releasing surplus COVID-19 vaccines to India.
India has administered 14 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine in just 99 days, the fastest in the world, the Health Ministry said on Saturday. More than 24 lakh vaccine doses were administered on Saturday till 8 pm, the ministry said.
Govt Principal Secy (Covid Management and Vaccination) wrote letters to Bharat Biotech MD Krishna Yella and Serum Institute of India Limited CEO Adar Poonawalla in this regard.
The Serum Institute of India (SII) on Saturday said only a limited portion of its vaccines volume will be sold to private hospitals at Rs 600 per dose.
Covishield vaccine offers protection from double mutant variant of novel coronavirus, shows a study by the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB). CCMB Director Rakesh K Mishra termed this as a very preliminary but encouraging result.
More than 1,700 doses of Covishield and Covaxin were stolen in Jind district of Haryana. The theft took place at the Jind Civil Hospital.
Sonia Gandhi has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over new vaccine policy. She has described the government's policy as arbitrary and discriminatory.
Bollywood actors Farhan Akhtar and Sonu Sood questioned why Serum Institute was not providing its Covishield vaccine at the same price to the centre and the states.
Bihar government will run a free vaccination drive against coronavirus for people above 18 years of age, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar informed on Wednesday.
More than 21,000 people tested positive for COVID-19 after taking the first dose of either Covishield or Covaxin, while over 5,500 contracted the infection after taking the second dose, the Centre said on Wednesday.
Covishield, from the Oxford/AstraZeneca stable, comprises over 90 per cent of the 12.76 crore COVID-19 vaccines administered across the country so far, according to government data on Wednesday.
SII said the Covishield vaccine will be available to state governments for Rs 400 per dose and to private hospitals at Rs 600 per dose.
ICMR study shows Covaxin neutralises against multiple variants of SARS-CoV-2 and effectively neutralises the double mutant strain as well.
The Serum Institute of India has said that it will provide Covishield to private hospitals for Rs 600 per dose. It will charge the state governments Rs 400 for per dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.
The Biden administration has conveyed to India that they understand India's pharmaceutical requirements and has promised to review embargo on Covid-19 vaccine raw material.
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