The coronavirus vaccine developed by Russia, Sputnik V, has made its way to the Centre’s CoWIN app amidst a tie-up between Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, which is procuring the vaccine, and Apollo Hospitals, which will play a big role in administering the vaccines.
Apollo has set a price tag of ₹1,250 for a dose of Sputnik V which includes all other charges. This is identical to the pricing of Covaxin as shown on the CoWIN app. Dr Reddy’s had announced a price of ₹995 per dose which includes 5 per cent GST (Goods & Services Tax).
Although Sputnik V has been greenlit for use in India, it will only reach the wider population by the middle of June. Currently, Sputnik V vaccinations are being conducted by Apollo as a pilot project amongst 50,000 employees of Dr Reddy’s Laboratories.
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Apollo is expected to vaccinate staff from Dr Reddy’s in Visakhapatnam on May 18 followed by staff at Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Pune.
“With the opening up of the vaccination programme for the private sector, we have intensified our efforts to accelerate the rate of vaccination by opening vaccination centers across our network,” President of Apollo Hospitals Enterprises Ltd, Dr K Hari Prasad said.
Sputnik V is being obtained by Dr Reddy’s as part of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) initiative.
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Dr Reddy's Laboratories CEO of Branded Markets (India & Emerging Markets), MV Ramana said, “The idea of the soft launch is to check if the systems are in place, across the length and breadth of the country.”
Dr Reddy’s has set an aim of inoculating at least 125 million citizens across India over the next 8 to 12 months. This ambitious vaccination drive will reportedly include 36 million imported doses while the rest will be produced locally.
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