New Delhi: Serum Institute of India’s CEO Adar Poonawalla tweeted on Wednesday that Covishield vaccine will cost states ₹300 instead of ₹400 and called it a “philanthropic gesture”.
“As a philanthropic gesture on behalf of Serum Institute of India, I hereby reduce the price to the states from Rs 400 to Rs 300 per dose, effective immediately; this will save thousands of crores of state funds going forward. This will enable more vaccinations and save countless lives,” Mr Poonawalla wrote in his tweet. SII said it would continue to provide vaccines to the Centre at ₹150 a shot.
Bharat Biotech that makes Covaxin and had priced each dose of its vaccine at ₹600 for states and ₹1,200 for private hospitals, is yet to announce the price cut.
The Centre on Wednesday opened vaccine registration for those in the age group of 18-44 years. But as soon as registration opened at 4 pm, there was a surge in the number of people trying to register and the CoWin system crashed…