All together in fight against pandemic: PM Modi responds to WHO chief's vaccine gratitude

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday responded to World Health Organisation chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who expressed gratitude to India for the supply of crucial COVID-19 vaccine doses to over 60 countries.

PM Modi replied to the WHO chief saying "We are all together in the fight against this pandemic" and that India is committed to sharing resources, experiences, and knowledge for global good.

The WHO chief had thanked the Prime Minister and India for sharing the Covid-19 vaccines which are the most essential commodity across the world in pandemic-ridden times. Dr Tedros said India's commitment to COVAX and sharing COVID-19 vaccine doses is helping more than 60 countries to start vaccinating their health workers and other priority groups. He also expressed hope that more countries will follow India in sharing the vaccines.

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Besides supplying over 60 countries, India will supply 2,00,000 doses of vaccines to the United Nations for vaccinating the peacekeepers. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he is “extremely grateful” for the gift of 200,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses by India for peacekeepers. Additional 200,000 doses mean that it will be possible to administer the required double doses of COVID-19 vaccines to all the United Nations peacekeepers across missions.

India has supplied 361.94 lakh doses of COVID-19 vaccines to various countries so far, the Ministry of External Affairs revealed on Thursday. While 67.5 lakh doses of the total vaccines have been supplied as grant assistance, 294.44 lakh are on a commercial basis, according to MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava.

India has supplied Covid-19 vaccines to several countries under its Vaccine Maitri initiative as a part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pledge to assist other countries to combat and overcome the challenges of the pandemic. The vaccine diplomacy which started with the supply of vaccines to neighbouring countries has now broadened its ambit by supplying it to distant countries having friendly ties with the Union of India. India has sent consignments of coronavirus vaccine doses as gifts to countries such as Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan, the Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Bahrain, Oman, Afghanistan, Barbados and Dominica. Countries that do not want to openly have India to thank for their vaccine supply, such as Pakistan, have the route of the COVAX alliance, which is also being supplied by India.

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