Serum Institute of India offers 20 mn free Covishield doses to govt

Pune-based Serum Institute of India has offered 20 million doses of Covishield to the central government for free, according to people familiar with the matter, a decision taken in anticipation of a spike in demand for booster doses.

Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII) has offered 20 million doses of Covishield to the central government for free, according to people familiar with the matter, a decision taken in anticipation of a spike in demand for booster doses.

A healthcare worker administers a booster dose of Covid vaccine to a woman during a special drive in Srinagar. (PTI)

The company’s director of government and regulatory affairs, Prakash Kumar Singh, wrote to Union health ministry offering the free doses of the vaccine, which was developed by University of Oxford and British pharma company AstraZeneca and licensed for production by SII.

The cost of vaccine volume that is being offered for free is nearly ₹410 crore, the people quoted above said.

SII has so far provided at least 1.7 billion doses of Covishield to the government to be used in the national Covid immunisation programme – making it the dose most widely used in the country.

Some states have been talking of low vaccine stocks and a spot check by HT on Wednesday showed no slots available for doses at government hospitals in Delhi.

Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Thursday separately met representatives of pharma companies to review availability of essential medicines in the country, amid concerns stemming from the spike in cases in China.

“Mansukh Mandaviya reviewed the status, adequacy of Covid management drugs and production capacities with representatives of pharma companies through a VC, here today, so that India is equipped to effectively handle any situation. This review meeting was taken in view of the spike in Covid-19 cases in some countries worldwide,” said Union ministry of health and family welfare in a statement.

“India’s pharmaceutical industry is robust, resilient and responsive. It is due to their strength that we could not only meet our down demand during the pandemic, but also be in a position to supply medicines to 150 countries,” said Mandaviya during the meeting.