Covishield maker SII's CEO Adar Poonawalla thanks PMs Modi & Johnson; hails India-UK ties

Serum Institute of India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla on Monday paid tribute to the strong India-UK partnership and vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson for facilitating early dialogue between SII, AstraZeneca and Oxford University. Taking to Twitter, the CEO of the world's largest vaccine maker also thanked the UK Secretary of State for Health & Social Care and MP for West Suffolk, Matt Hancock, and the UK Minister of State for South Asia and the Commonwealth, Tariq Ahmad, Baron Ahmad of Wimbledon. 

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This statement by Adar Poonawalla comes after India approved SII's Covishield vaccine for emergency use and manufacturing in India. Earlier on Sunday, DCGI approved SII's Covishield and Bharat Biotech's Covaxin for emergency use in India. 

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DCGI grants permission to manufacture Covishield in India

DCGI on Monday granted permission to Serum Institute of India (SII) to manufacture its COVID-19 vaccine 'Covishield'. The company is manufacturing the vaccine developed by Oxford University and pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca. Over 50 million doses of Covishield vaccine, worth Rs 2000 crore, have been stockpiled by SII.  The document by DCGO states that the vaccine is for active immunisation of individuals who are 18+ years old. The second dose should be administered between 4-6 weeks of the first, though it can be administered up to 12 weeks later as well. 

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