Will govt have Rs 80,000 cr for distribution of vaccine, asks Serum Institute CEO

Pune: Adar Poonawalla, Chief Executive Officer of Serum Institute of India (SII) which is producing the potential coronavirus vaccine developed by Oxford University, asked on Saturday if the government will have Rs 80,000 crore available to buy and distribute the vaccine.

"Quick question; will the government of India have 80,000 crores available, over the next one year? Because that's what @MoHFW_INDIAneeds, to buy and distribute the vaccine to everyone in India," he tweeted,

This is the next "challenge" we need to tackle, he said, also tagging the prime minister's office.


"I ask this question because we need to plan and guide, vaccine manufacturers both in India and overseas to service the needs of our country in terms of procurement and distribution," Poonawalla added.

SII has signed an agreement to manufacture the potential vaccine developed by Jenner Institute of Oxford University in collaboration with British-Swedish pharma company AstraZeneca.

Earlier, SII had announced that it will make the Oxford vaccine available at USD 3 for low- and middle-income countries including India.