20,000 doses of Covaxin stored at Rajiv Gandhi hospital amid tight security

The first batch of Oxford Covishield vaccine containing 2.64 lakh doses reached the Delhi's central storage facility at RGSSH on Tuesday amid high security, officials earlier said

Twenty thousand doses of the Covid-19 vaccine made by Bharat Biotech have been stored at the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital in Delhi, ahead of the vaccination rollout on January 16, officials said on Wednesday.
 

The first batch of Oxford Covishield vaccine containing 264,000 doses reached the Delhi's central storage facility at RGSSH on Tuesday amid high security, officials earlier said.
 

"We also received 20,000 doses of Bharat Biotech-made Covaxin yesterday. Both the vaccines are stored in the ground floor of the utility building on our premises, earmarked for the central storage in temperate-controlled environment," a senior official said.
 

At RGSSH, a three-layer security cover guards the stored vaccine, with about 15 new CCTV cameras recently installed to keep a round-the-clock eye on the facility.
 

"Each Covaxin vial has 20 doses, and we have received 1,000 vials. Besides, police, paramilitary personnel and our internal security team guard the facility 24x7 in different shifts. These vaccines are worth more than precious gold right now," the official said.

The vaccination rollout will be kicked off from the LNJP Hospital on January 16 with a simple ceremony in the presence of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Health Minister Satyendar Jain, sources said on Wednesday.
 

Meanwhile, the Delhi Chief Minister's Office tweeted on Wednesday, "Hon'ble CM Shri @ArvindKejriwal will chair a meeting on Thursday, January 14 at 11 AM to review the preparations made under the Delhi government's Covid vaccination rollout plan".

Also, the sources said, the total number of sites in Delhi where Covid-19 vaccination rollout will be carried out on January 16 has been revised to 75 from 89 decided earlier by authorities.

The Delhi government is all set for the first phase of the immunisation exercise with healthcare workers being put in the front line to get the dose.
 

A senior official at the hospital said 22 boxes, each containing 1,200 vials of the Oxford Covid-19 vaccine Covishield, were delivered to the facility on Tuesday afternoon. Each vial of 5 milliliters has 10 doses.
 

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Sadarjung Hospital, LNJP Hospital, GTB Hospital, Apollo Hospitals and Max Hospital will be among the vaccination centres here.
 

India's drugs regulator has approved Oxford Covid-19 vaccine Covishield, manufactured by the Serum Institute, and indigenously developed Covaxin of Bharat Biotech for restricted emergency use in the country.