Sputnik V commercial launch in final stages, vaccine to be available in 9 more cities: Dr Reddy’s

New Delhi: Dr Reddy’s Laboraties on Wednesday (June 16, 2021) revealed that the Russian COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V will soon be available in the markets commercially. 

Dr Reddy’s Laboraties, which collaborated with The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) to manufacture the jabs in India, also announced that Sputnik V which was initially launched only in in Hyderabad, will now be available in nine other Indian cities.

“The limited pilot soft launch of the Sputnik V vaccine in India has now been successfully scaled up to other cities such as Visakhapatnam, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Baddi, Chennai, Miryalaguda and Kolhapur, with more cities to follow in the next few days," it said.

“This pilot phase has allowed us to test our cold storage arrangements of -18 degree C temperature in these cities, CoWIN integration, track-and-trace and other logistical arrangements ahead of our commercial launch," it added. 

The Hyderabad-based pharma giant added that the pilot launch is in its final leg and necessary arrangements are being made to ensure the availability of both doses in the cities.

“The limited pilot phase is currently in its final leg as we gear up to ensure a smooth commercial launch," it said adding that the number of cold chain units was being increased to match requirement.

“All the necessary supply arrangements are being executed to ensure the availability of both dose components in the right quantity and at the right time at partner hospitals," the pharma giant said.

Meanwhile, while trying to register for the Russian vaccine on CoWIN platform, it said that people will have to wait for the commercial launch.

The Centre has fixed the price of the Sputnik V vaccine at private hospitals at Rs 1,410 per dose. The government on June 10 had revealed that the efficacy of the Sputnik V vaccine during a vaccination campaign by Bahrain’s Ministry of Health was estimated to be at 94.3 percent.

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