Sputnik V, the Russian COVID-19 vaccine being produced in India by Dr Reddy's Laboratory has made its debut on the CoWIN platform on May 18.
As of time of publishing, the vaccine is only available at Apollo Hospital in Hyderabad for Rs 1,250 per jab for those aged 45 and above.
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Dr Reddy's on May 17 said that eight to nine states – including Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have approached it for procurement of Sputnik V.
It also announced a partnership with Apollo Hospitals for a trial rollout of the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine, wherein Dr Reddy's will use the services of the Apollo Hospitals network nationally in storage, transportation, administering and monitoring of people who get vaccinated.
Apollo Hospitals had then said it will be pricing the jab at Rs 1,200- Rs 1,250 per dose.
Dr Reddy's had also said that the initial rollout will begin in Hyderabad and will be extended to Visakhapatnam and other metro cities.
Earlier, Dr Reddy's had announced that imported doses of Russia's Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine will be priced at Rs 948 plus 5 percent GST or Rs 995.40 per dose. It said the price of the imported Sputnik V vaccine would remain the same for the government and private channels.
Dr Reddy's has received 1.5 lakh doses of Sputnik first dose last week, the company said it has received the second consignment of 60,000 doses second dose during the weekend.
Besides Apollo Hospital, Dr Reddy's has also tied up with IHH Healthcare’s Continental Hospitals.
When Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and Gamaleya Institute's Sputnik V was granted approval for emergency use in India, it became the third vaccine and first foreign option – besides Serum Institute’s Covishield and Bharat Biotech Covaxin, in the country’s vaccination drive.
The timing of its entry is crucial as India has opened up its vaccination drive for all citizens above the age of 18 from May 1.
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