NEW DELHI: The Center has set aside nearly $ 7 billion (roughly Rs 51,000 crore) to vaccinate India’s 1.3 billion people against Covid-19, Bloomberg reported citing people with knowledge of the matter.
The Modi government estimates a total cost of around $ 6 to $ 7 (roughly Rs 450-550) per person in the nation of 1.3 billion, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the details are private.
The money provided so far is for the current financial year ending March 31 and there will be no shortage of additional funds for this purpose, they added.
The government is said to have estimated two injections per person at $ 2 (Rs 150) per injection.
Another $ 2 to $ 3 per individual is said to be set aside as infrastructure costs, such as storage and transportation, based on the recommendations of a task force.
In his recent speech to the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that the government is trying to ensure that the Covid-19 vaccine reaches all Indians.
The government recently launched a massive exercise to map cold chain storage facilities to ensure the vaccine is rapidly distributed across the country.
A group of national experts is speaking with public and private sector entities in the pharmaceutical sector, the food processing industry and agricultural companies, as well as emerging food delivery companies such as Swiggy and Zomato to identify cold rooms or refrigerators to taluka level that can store and distribute the vaccine, sources had revealed.
Meanwhile, India has also started to identify around 30 million priority beneficiaries, including the high-risk population and first responders, from health workers to the police, sanitation workers, as well as the elderly and people with comorbidities, they will likely receive an estimated 60 million rupees. dose of vaccine.
The injections, which include the booster dose, are planned for the initial phase once a vaccine is approved for use.
Currently, there are three vaccine candidates undergoing human trials in India. Of these, the Oxford-AstraZeneca candidate is in the most advanced stage of Phase 3 and the Pune-based Serum Institute is conducting trials in India.
The government recently said that its Phase 3 data will be available around late November or early December.
(With inputs from agencies)
The Modi government estimates a total cost of around $ 6 to $ 7 (roughly Rs 450-550) per person in the nation of 1.3 billion, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the details are private.
The money provided so far is for the current financial year ending March 31 and there will be no shortage of additional funds for this purpose, they added.
The government is said to have estimated two injections per person at $ 2 (Rs 150) per injection.
Another $ 2 to $ 3 per individual is said to be set aside as infrastructure costs, such as storage and transportation, based on the recommendations of a task force.
In his recent speech to the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that the government is trying to ensure that the Covid-19 vaccine reaches all Indians.
The government recently launched a massive exercise to map cold chain storage facilities to ensure the vaccine is rapidly distributed across the country.
A group of national experts is speaking with public and private sector entities in the pharmaceutical sector, the food processing industry and agricultural companies, as well as emerging food delivery companies such as Swiggy and Zomato to identify cold rooms or refrigerators to taluka level that can store and distribute the vaccine, sources had revealed.
Meanwhile, India has also started to identify around 30 million priority beneficiaries, including the high-risk population and first responders, from health workers to the police, sanitation workers, as well as the elderly and people with comorbidities, they will likely receive an estimated 60 million rupees. dose of vaccine.
The injections, which include the booster dose, are planned for the initial phase once a vaccine is approved for use.
Currently, there are three vaccine candidates undergoing human trials in India. Of these, the Oxford-AstraZeneca candidate is in the most advanced stage of Phase 3 and the Pune-based Serum Institute is conducting trials in India.
The government recently said that its Phase 3 data will be available around late November or early December.
(With inputs from agencies)
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