NEW DELHI: Dr Reddy’s on Friday administered the first shot of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine for Covid-19 in Hyderabad. The company said the imported vaccines would be priced at Rs 995.40 (Rs 948 + 5 per cent GST).
The price may reduce when local supply begins. Dr Reddy’s said it was working with six manufacturers in India to fulfill regulatory requirements to ensure smooth and timely supply of the vaccine. The company, in a statement, said the first dose was administered as part of a limited pilot. “Further consignments of imported doses are expected over the upcoming months. Subsequently, supply of Sputnik V vaccine will commence from Indian manufacturing partners,” it said.
Sputnik V, the vaccine developed by Russia, is now the third coronavirus vaccine to get emergency use approval, after Covishield (Serum Institute of India) and Covaxin (Bharat Biotech). Phase 3 trials of the vaccine, conducted in Russia, have found it has an efficacy of 91.6 per cent. The vaccine, developed by Gamaleya National Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology in Moscow, uses two different viruses that cause the common cold (adenovirus) in humans.
The adenoviruses are weakened so they cannot replicate in humans and cannot cause disease. They are also modified so that the vaccine delivers a code for making the coronavirus spike protein. This aims to ensure that when the real virus tries to infect the body, it can mount an immune response in the form of antibodies.
The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) had partnered with Dr Reddy’s in September 2020 to conduct clinical trials in India.
