Sputnik V, with efficacy of 91.6 %, received the drug regulator's nod for emergency use in April. File
Residents of Gurgaon may soon be able to get jabs of Russian coronavirus vaccine Sputnik V.
The health department has confirmed that they expect to receive a few thousand doses of the vaccine in the first week of July.
According to the health department, the city will receive the doses as part of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative. To administer the doses, five government facilities have been set up across the city. These are at Sector 31 Polyclinic, Wazirabad Primary healthcare centre, Pataudi Civil Hospital, Sohna Civil Hospital and Sector 10 Civil Hospital.
Dr Virender Yadav, Chief Medical Officer for Gurgaon district, told NDTV, "A team consisting of members from Dr Reddy's Laboratories, an NGO and the health department visited a few facilities for site inspection. Dr Reddy's team was satisfied and we are expecting to administer the first dose of Sputnik vaccine in the first week of July at 5 government-run facilities under a CSR initiative."
The development comes amid reports that the rollout of the Russian vaccine at several private hospitals in the National Capital Region (NCR) has been delayed again.
Indraprastha Apollo had earlier said that it would tentatively start administering the two-dose vaccine by June 25.
"We do not have a clarity on the dates of the vaccine roll-out," a spokesperson of Apollo Hospitals said, according to a PTI report.
At least 13 lakh people in Gurgaon have received their first dose and at least 2 lakh people are fully vaccinated so far.
Sputnik V, which is learnt to have a high efficacy rate of 91.6 per cent, received clearance from the drug regulator for emergency use in April.
A pilot programme was launched on May 17 by Dr Reddy's in collaboration with Apollo Hospitals. The first dose of Sputnik V In India was administered in Hyderabad on May 15 under the pilot launch.
Later, the pilot launch was extended to nine other cities, including Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi and Chennai.
According to the Centre's pricing schedule, Sputnik has been priced at Rs 1,145, including hospital charges and tax.