First Batch of Serum Institute’s Covishield Leaves Pune Airport

The Serum Institute of India sent out the first batch of its coronavirus vaccine, Covishield early morning today. The first batch left Pune, four days ahead of the nationwide inoculation drive against Covid-19. It is to be noted that while vaccines are being dispatched to 13 cities from the Pune airport, the consignment for Mumbai will leave by road. 

Shortly before 5 am on Tuesday morning, three Covishield-carrying temperature-controlled trucks were rolled out of the Serum Institute gates. The three trucks carried 478 boxes of the Covishield, each box weighing 32 kg. As per officials, puja was also conducted prior to the transfer. 

Covishield, Serum Institute’s coronavirus vaccines are being flown out in a total of 8 commercial flights, including two cargo flights. The first cargo flight will go to Hyderabad, Vijayawada, and Bhubaneswar and the second cargo flight will cover Kolkata and Guwahati.

The news emerged as the government has ordered 1.01 crore doses of Covishield from Serum Institute and plans to buy 5.60 crore doses by April, at the price of Rs. 200 per dose. It is to be noted that The Hindustan Lifecare Limited or HLL will purchase the vaccines from both, Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech.

Earlier this month, Covishield along with Covaxin received emergency use approval from DCGI. The transfer of novel coronavirus vaccines was carried out as India prepares for its vaccine roll out on January 16. 

The Indian government confirmed that 30 crore people, prioritizing health workers and frontline workers will be administered the vaccine in the first phase.

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Disclaimer: This article is issued in the general public interest and meant for general information purposes only. Readers are advised not to rely on the contents of the article as conclusive in nature and should research further or consult an expert in this regard.