How India’s Vaccine Drive Crumbled and Left a Country in Chaos
Bloomberg 8 hrs ago Bibhudatta Pradhan, Archana Chaudhary and Sudhi Ranjan Sen
(Bloomberg) When India launched its Covid-19 vaccination drive in mid-January, the chances of success looked high: It could produce more shots than any country in the world and had decades of experience inoculating pregnant women and babies in rural areas.
“Our preparation has been such that vaccine is fast reaching every corner of the country,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Jan. 22. “On the world’s biggest need today, we are completely self-reliant. Not just that, India is also helping out many countries with vaccines.”
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Adar Poonawalla s Serum cuts Covishield vaccine price for state governments to ₹300 a dose after much backlash
Adar Poonawalla s Serum cuts Covishield vaccine price for state governments to ₹300 a dose after much backlash
Sriram IyerApr 28, 2021, 18:45 IST
Adar Poonawalla, CEO, Serum Institute of IndiaAdar Poonawalla/Twitter
The CEO of the world s largest vaccine maker has been getting much flak from those who think the vaccine prices are too high.
From defending the policy of charging different prices for different customers, Poonawalla has now take a small step back by reducing the price charged to state governments.
Business Insider has argued that the price of the vaccine should be the same for everyone otherwise there is a risk that the precious vials may be moved to more lucrative private hospitals, making the poorer sections of the society wait longer. After much backlash for the last set of pricing announced by Serum Institute of India (SII), for its Covishield
Another Vaccine in India? Poonawalla Says Covovax Shown ‘Excellent Results’, Hopes to Launch it by June
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A day after Serum Institute of India (SII) sought the Drugs Controller General of India’s approval to conduct a small domestic trial of the Novavax coronavirus vaccine, its Chief Executive Officer Adar Poonawalla on Saturday the company is hopeful of launching the vaccine by June this year.
The vaccine will be launched under the local brand Covovax.
Poonawalla said that SII s partnership with Novavax, a vaccine undergoing trials for effectiveness against the novel coronavirus, has published excellent efficacy results .
“Our partnership for a COVID-19 vaccine with @Novavax has also published excellent efficacy results. We have also applied to start trials in India. Hope to launch #COVOVAX by June 2021!” he said in a tweet.
The vaccine of US-based Novavax, a prime contender for use in India, has shown 89.3 per cent efficacy in phase 3 clinical trials conducted in the UK. Its Indian partner, Serum Institute of India (SII), has applied to the regulator to conduct bridge trials here, and is planning to start manufacturing soon in the country. The Nasdaq-listed, company said its vaccine candidate NVX-Co-V2373 had met the primary endpoint. The trial has assessed its efficacy during a period with high transmission and with a new UK strain of the virus. It was conducted in partnership with the British government’s vaccine taskforce. Novavax said the phase 2b trials conducted in South Africa were successful, too.
The crime branch of the city policy was conducting a parallel investigation. Jan 23, 2021 · 11:18 am The police visit the Serum Institute of India in Pune, where a fire broke out on Friday. | PTI
The Pune police, a forensic team and officials from three Maharashtra government agencies on Friday started an investigation to ascertain the cause of the fire at the Serum Institute of India’s premises, reported PTI. The blaze claimed five lives.
“Our investigation started today afternoon,” Pune Police Commissioner Amitabh Gupta said on Friday. “Our crime branch team, [and] a forensic team reached the spot to begin the probe.”