DTMT Network

In order to boost COVID-19 vaccination, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has partnered with the Serum Institute of India (SII).

The drive will aim communities in small towns and rural areas to ensure wide coverage of vaccination.

TV Narendran, President, CII said India's post-pandemic growth depends on how soon the eligible population is vaccinated and economic activities can return to track.

“CII aims to connect the community, hospitals, and corporates to fast-track vaccination, and the partnership with Serum Institute will help catalyse industry participation to reach out to communities at large. Overall, the industry has been playing a responsible part in ensuring vaccination of workers and their families, but clearly given the scale and urgency of the vaccination programme, we can complement and supplement the efforts of the government in this pivotal mission for the nation,” he stated.

Adar Poonawalla, CEO, SII said Serum Institute is pleased to partner with CII to work with industry members in reaching out the vaccine to communities in the hinterland.

“While SII has manufactured the vaccine at scale within a short period of time, it is essential that all stakeholders work together towards carrying out the inoculations. Our partnership with CII will be a good way to close the gaps, as there is plenty of supply of Covishield available for distribution,” he said.

As part of the pan-India vaccine demand aggregation exercise, CII undertook a survey with responses from over 3,000 companies in 196 cities. This identified a requirement of over seven million single-dose vaccines.

As per the press release, as of 23 July 2021, a total of 3.4 million single doses have been administered through 430 camps held across the country by the CII and the CII Foundation.