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New Delhi : Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya announced that India will resume distribution of India-manufactured COVID-19 vaccines across borders under its Vaccine Maitri programme. It will resume in the fourth quarter which starts from October 2021 after being disrupted for months as India witnessed a steep rise in the number of COVID cases during the second wave.
The Health Minister informed that the export and delivery of surplus vaccines to Covax will resume in line with its commitment towards the global vaccine programme. COVAX is co-led by GAVI, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and WHO to provide vaccines to lower-income countries that are unable to place vaccine orders on their own.
Highlighting the importance of indigenous research and production of COVID vaccines in India, Mandaviya said that India has done significantly well on the scientific front by simultaneously undertaking research and production of COVID vaccines in line with the global developments.
India’s vaccination drive has been marked as the fastest and largest, aiming to inoculate the adult segment of its 1.3 billion population by December 2021.
Minister added that India has been able to achieve the feat of administering over one crore in a single day four times since the vaccination drive commenced on 16th January.
He further added that after further ramping up the vaccine productions, estimated 30 crore doses will be received by the government in the coming month of October and more than 100 crore vaccines in the coming quarter.