Covid vaccine: Second consignment of Sputnik V arrives in India

The first consignment of Sputnik had landed in India on May 1. However, the regulatory clearance from the Central Drugs Laboratory-Kasauli was given only on May 13.

Covid-19: The second consignment of Covid vaccine Sputnik V has arrived in India. Sputnik is among the three vaccines approved in the country. Two other vaccines are Covaxin of Bharat Biotech and Covishield of Serum Institute of India.

Nikolay Kudashev, Russian Ambassador to India, shared the picture of the second consignment on Twitter: “A second batch of Sputnik V has landed in Hyderabad today! We are very happy to see that the #RussiaIndia joint fight against #COVID19, which is one of the vital areas of our bilateral cooperation nowadays, has firmly stood on rails & moving forward.”

Sputnik has tied up with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories for manufacturing in India. The first consignment of Sputnik had landed in India on May 1. However, the regulatory clearance from the Central Drugs Laboratory-Kasauli was given only on May 13.

Sputnik has tied up with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories for manufacturing in India. The first consignment of Sputnik had landed in India on May 1. However, the regulatory clearance from the Central Drugs Laboratory-Kasauli was given only on May 13.

The Russian Ambassador said that the efficacy of Sputnik V was well-known in world. In Russia, he said, it was being successfully used to vaccinate citizens starting since 2nd half of 2020. “Russian specialists declared it’s also effective against new COVID19 strains,” he said.

“Sputnik V is Russian-Indian vaccine. We expect that its production in India will be gradually increased up to 850 million doses per year… There are plans to introduce single-dose vaccine soon in India-Sputnik Lite,” he said.

On May 14, Dr Reddy’s launched Sputnik V in the Indian market. The first dose was administered on the same day in Hyderabad. The pharma company said that the imported doses of the vaccine were presently priced at a maximum retail price of ₹948, with 5 per cent GST per dose — total ₹995.4 per dose. “The imported doses of the vaccine are presently priced at an MRP of ₹948 + 5 per cent GST per dose, with the possibility of a lower price point when local supply begins,” Dr Reddy’s said in a statement.