New Delhi: Pune based vaccine manufacturer Serum Institute of India (SII) has partnered with Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) to licence produce Sputnik V vaccine in India, the production is expected to commence in September this year as the process of transfer of technology has already started, the RDIF said in a statement sent to ETV Bharat. Sputnik V is one of the three Covid vaccines that are currently available in the country against the Covid-19 virus.
In January this year, India started the world’s largest vaccination programme with two locally produced vaccines, Covishield developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, which is produced by the SII and the other one – Covaxin - locally developed by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Hyderabad based vaccine producer Bharat Biotech.
The RDIF said the cultivation process has already started following the approval by the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) and Serum Institute intends to produce over 300 million doses of Russian Sputnik V vaccine per year. “As part of the technical transfer process, SII has already received cell and vector samples from the Gamaleya Center. With their import approved by the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI), the cultivation process has begun,” the RDIF said.
According to the RDIF, India has emerged as a leading production hub for production of Sputnik vaccine. RDIF had earlier reached agreements with a number of pharmaceutical companies in India (Gland Pharma, Hetero Biopharma, Panacea Biotec, Stelis Biopharma, Virchow Biotech and Morepen) for production of the Russian vaccine. “With technology transfer underway we expect the first batches of the vaccine to be produced jointly with SII in coming months,” said Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund.
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Dmitriev said it will help in saving lives in India and around the world. "We hope to make millions of doses in the coming months with trial batches starting in the month of September,” said Adar Poonawalla, CEO of Serum Institute of India. Poonawalla said with a high efficacy level and a good safety profile, it is critical that the Sputnik vaccine is accessible in full measure for people across India and the world.