Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine to be available for use in India in May-June - Indian company

NEW DELHI, April 15. /TASS/. Russia’s Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine will be available for use in India in May-June when imports from Russia begin, Co-Chairman and Managing Director of the Indian pharmaceutical company Dr. Reddy's Laboratories G. V. Prasad has said. "The first batches are going to be produced by RDIF (the Russian Direct Investment Fund) and will be imported to India by us," the Times of India quotes Prasad as saying on Thursday. The production of the vaccine in India will kick off in the July-September period. Sputnik V will be delivered to India under a contract between Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories and the Russian Direct Investment Fund. On April 12, RDIF announced that India’s Drugs Controller General had approved the Sputnik V vaccine for use in that country. Sputnik V thus became the third vaccine approved in India. At present, India uses two vaccines, namely, Covishield developed by the British-Swedish company AstraZeneca and Oxford University and COVAXIN developed by Indian company Bharat Biotech. In February, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories applied for permission to use Sputnik V in India. The company is ready to distribute the Russian vaccine. RDIF has also reached an agreement on manufacturing the vaccine with several Indian pharmaceutical companies. The vaccine earlier passed interim trials in India, which involved 1,600 volunteers. Read more