NEW DELHI, May 2 (NNN-PTI) – India yesterday received the first shipment of Russian COVID-19 vaccine — Sputnik V, officials said.
“Sputnik-V vaccine arrives in Hyderabad from Russia! Will add to India’s arsenal to fight the pandemic. This third option will augment our vaccine capacity and accelerate our vaccination drive,” India’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi, in a brief statement, said.
He also shared pictures of the shipment taken at the airport.
“This is the first consignment of 150,000 doses of Sputnik-V vaccine, with millions of doses to follow,” Bagchi said.
Reports said, the vaccines will be delivered to Dr Reddy’s Laboratories in Hyderabad, which has joined hands with Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), to produce Sputnik V in India.
Meanwhile, Dr Reddy’s said, the rollout of Sputnik V will be subject to necessary clearances. Sputnik V will be the third COVID-19 vaccine in India after Covaxin and Covishield.
The vaccine comes at a time when the second wave of COVID-19 wreaked havoc in India and daily cases are making new records each passing day.
Federal health ministry, yesterday morning, said, 401,993 new cases and 3,523 related deaths were registered in the past 24 hours.– NNN-PTI
