SII also said that the vaccines were exported earlier in January since a large stockpile of doses were left, and the country's number of Covid cases were at an all-time low.
In affidavits to SC, 9 states have said SII & Bharat Biotech have either expressed inability to supply the stock by May-end or said there will be staggered delivery over the next 2-3 months.
Modi govt Friday said it had told states to prioritise second dose of Covid vaccines over first dose in a 70:30 ratio, in what may be its first admission about shortage of vaccines.
Bangladesh, Nepal & Sri Lanka have urged the Modi government to let commercial Covid vaccine shipments go through. Sri Lanka has reached out to China, Russia for vaccine doses.
The announcement came ahead of a virtual summit between PM Boris Johnson & Narendra Modi. SII has also started phase 1 trials of a nasal vaccine against coronavirus in the UK.
Media reports alleging that the Centre has not placed any fresh order for Covid-19 vaccines are 'incorrect and not based on facts', the Union Health Ministry said.
Poonawalla made the announcement soon after he spoke out about pressures he was under over the production of Covid vaccines to meet India's ever-increasing demand amid shortages.
The move comes after many states objected to different pricing of the vaccines, with Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal saying this is not time for profiteering.
Pune is home to Serum Institute of India and National Institute of Virology. But it’s second only to Mumbai in the number of Covid infections reported in Maharashtra.
New CPI series will take 2024 as base year, will provide more accurate measure of inflation, spending on digital services. Expected to enhance representation and reliability, says Saurabh Garg.
The agreement, signed after meeting between Rajnath and US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on sidelines of ADMM-Plus in Kuala Lumpur, aims to deepen bilateral ties in the critical sector.
This world is being restructured and redrawn by one man, and what’s his power? It’s not his formidable military. It’s trade. With China, it turned on him.
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