India will continue to supply Covid-19 vaccines to partner countries in the coming weeks and months in a phased manner

Several countries have evinced interest in accessing Covid-19 vaccines from India, which is the global hub of vaccines production in the world, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday, while maintaining that since January 20, India has started supplying vaccines to neighbouring and friendly countries.

On the first day, 1.5 lakh doses of vaccine were dispatched to Bhutan and one lakh doses to Maldives under grant assistance, said Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava during a weekly briefing. Nepal and Bangladesh were next in line to receive India supplied covidshield vaccines. On January 21, while the Himalayan country got 10 lakh Serum Institute of India produced vaccines, Bangladesh received 21 lakh doses of vaccines from India—and all this under grant assistance.

Similarly, consignments containing 15 lakh doses of covishield vaccines were sent to Myanmar on January 22. On the same day, as per the MEA Spokesperson, one lakh doses of vaccines were airlifted to Mauritius, while 50,000 doses of vaccines to Seychelles.

With regard to Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, the MEA Spokesperson said covishield vaccines will be sent to these countries under grant assistance as and when regulatory clearances from them are received.

He said India is undertaking contractual supplies of coronavirus vaccines to Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Brazil, Morocco, Bangladesh and Myanmar. “Contractual supplies to Brazil and Morocco have already been dispatched.

The MEA Spokesperson also said that India will continue to supply Covid-19 vaccines to partner countries in coming weeks and months in a phased manner. But he said it will happen only after ensuring that domestic manufacturers have adequate stocks to meet domestic requirements.

Asked whether India is sending the vaccines to Pakistan, Srivastava said he was not aware of any request for their supply to Islamabad. “ I am not aware of any request for the supply of India made vaccines under G to G, G to B or any commercial basis to Pakistan,” the MEA Spokesperson said.

He added that currently in India, not one but two, made in India vaccines are in production; while four vaccines are in active clinical trial stage, 15 vaccines are in preclinical stages.