- First visits Zydus Cadila Research Centre in Gujarat to review nCoV vaccine preparation
- Bharat Biotech facility in Hyderabad is second stop followed by a visit to Serum Institute of India (SII) in Pune
Ahmedabad (Gujarat): Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a 3-city vaccine tour, today reviewed the vaccine development process at the Zydus Cadila Research Centre in Changodar industrial area, over 20 kms from here.
“Visited the Zydus Biotech Park in Ahmedabad to know more about the indigenous DNA based vaccine being developed by Zydus Cadila. I compliment the team behind this effort for their work. Government of India is actively working with them to support them in this journey,” the PM posted on Twitter.
The drug-maker has announced that the first phase of the clinical trial of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, ZyCoV-D, has been completed and it commenced the second phase of clinical trials in August.
In order to get a first-hand perspective of the preparations, challenges and roadmap in India’s endeavour to vaccinate its citizens, Modi is on a 3-city tour to India’s top vaccine hubs today, with his first stop being Gujarat.
Modi greeted the crowd gathered outside Zydus Biotech Park during his vaccine review visit.
The Prime Minister is slated to fly to Hyderabad and visit Bharat BioTech, which is working on Covaxin — India’s first indigenous vaccine candidate, followed by a visit to Serum Institute of India (SII) in Pune, which has partnered with global pharma giant AstraZeneca and Oxford University for a COVID-19 vaccine.
PM Modi is expected to review the status of the vaccine, including its launch, production and distribution mechanisms during the visit. “As India enters a decisive phase of the fight against COVID-19, PM Narendra Modi’s visit to these facilities and discussions with the scientists will help him get a first-hand perspective of the preparations, challenges and roadmap in India’s endeavour to vaccinate its citizens,” the Prime Minister’s Office tweeted yesterday.
There will be list of central and state government ministers, central and state government officials , VIPs such as DeveGowda etc..etc.. who will will have the vaccination free of cost, before it comes to ordinary citizens who will be charged to have the vaccination. It is understood the Astra Zeneka has made available the license and supplies almost free by the British government with the hope that the vaccination will be given free for the poor and to all ordinary citizens. But knowing India and its corrupt practices which always put politicians, officials and VIPs above the poor and ordinary people, the first recipients to get priority free vaccinations will be politicians,officials and VIPs.
Lives of poor and ordinary citizens in India are considered immaterial for those in the Indian power structure.
This is independent India after 70 + years of independence. Jai Hind!!
Yes, PM Modi is anxious to get this vaccine. He will get one thanks to Astra Zeneka who have provided the know how free and may contribute the serum for free distribution to the poor. Knowing India, this will not happen, as there will be a prioritised queue of VVIPs, VIPs, whose lives are more worth than those at the bottom of the social ladder; the black market for the Vaccine will thrive, and private hospitals and doctors want to get more rich quickly too. No one would be surprised that a shot of the vaccination may cost as high as Rupees 5000! After all, it is the cost of a quintal of rice. Life is worth more than a quintal of rice, of course will be the argument.
Immunised PM Modi , so far constrained at home and feeling claustrophobic, wants to travel to foreign shores as before, wearing good Indian-style dress,, taking selfies with leaders of Western countries, particularly with the VP-elect Kamala Harris, who would have become the VP of US by then. Even though she emphasises that she is an African-American, and hence got Biden the massive African-American votes, PM Modi and the newspapers in India are claiming that she is ” our own”! Immunised PM Modi will even take selfies with her in the traditional Tamil Nadu dress: Angavastram, Shirt and Veshti as he did with Xi Jinping is Mamallapuram near Chennai , a few yeas ago. That did not help him when China occupied Indian territories recently!
But PM Modi this time,, will emphasise Kamala Harris’s Tamil Nadu connection, forgetting that her father was a black African Jamaican !
PM Modi will boast in the US, about India’s technological capabilities including the biotech capabilities and point to the vaccine production., ignoring that hundreds of millions of poor Indians living in slums, hungry and inflicted with the Virus, will have no hope of getting vaccinated.
He will hope Kamala Harris , despite itchy about the Article 370 removal and the new citizenship laws will influence Joe Biden to confront China. Good ole Joe wants to be a friend of China and may not have forgotten PM Modi’s “Howdy Modi” and ” Namaste Trump”Jamborees with Trump.
Interesting days ahead with Covid-19 immunised PM Modi, and his usual sojourns to foreign shores!!
What ever it may be about vaccine !! But fancy dress Theme was “Scientist”
And he won first prize for it LOL 😉