India to buy 11mvaccine doses fromSerumat Rs200 per shot

Politicians should not jump queue to take the vaccine, Modi says

India has signed a purchase order with vaccine producer Serum Institute to supply some 11 million doses of AstraZeneca’s Covid- 19 vaccine, a source said yesterday, the first step in one of the world’s largest such programmes.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government would buy the shots at 200 rupees ($ 2.72) per dose, said the source, who had been briefed on the matter. Serum, the local maker of the Oxford University/ AstraZeneca shot, would start sending the doses to government storage facilities today, the source added.

India has the world’s second highest number of coronavirus infections - nearly 10.5 million - after the United States, although its rate of increase in cases has been slowing. The government has also signed a purchase deal with Indian firm Bharat Biotech for its Covid- 19 vaccine, TV channel CNBC reported. The programme is expected to begin on January 16.

In closing remarks after meeting India’s state heads, Modi said priority in the second phase would be given to people over 50 and those suffering from other diseases that put themat risk.

Modi underscored that politicians should not jump queue to take the vaccine but wait for their turn, sources quoted NDTV as saying.

The Indian government has been negotiating with the Serum Institute of India to bring down the price of AstraZeneca’s Covid- 19 vaccine, people close to the matter said, delaying the roll- out of the country’s immunisation programme.

India’s drug regulator has approved emergency use of the vaccine developed byOxford University as well as another developed by Indian firm Bharat Biotech, but the government has not placed firm orders with either firm.

Senior officials have been discussing the terms of the dealwith the SerumInstitute for weeks, hoping to bring down prices below $ 3 ( Dh11.02) per shot, one of the sources said.

Serum chief executive Adar Poonawalla had told the CNBC- TV18 channel in November the vaccine would be priced at about Rs1,000 ($ 13.55) per dose for the private market in India and would cost the government about Rs250 ($ 3.40) per dose.

Some officials are seeing the possibility of a further lowering of prices, the source said.

To vaccinate a country of over 1.3 billion people involves a large cost and every rupee saved would help, the source said.

“Any government would do this, we need to keep costs down,” the source said.

“Price is an issuewith Serum. Government needs to control it,” another official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

On Saturday, the government announced the immunisation programme will begin on January 16. Theplan is tocover 300million people in the first part of the programme, kicking off with health workers, frontline staff such as police and then people over the age of 50 and thosewith co- morbidities. That will require 600 million doses and Serum, the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines has stockpiled 50 million doses for immediate distribution.