We want to price Covid-19 vaccine below Rs 1,000: Serum Institute CEO

Pune's Serum Institute of India is placing its bets on the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine candidate AZD1222

Pune’s Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine maker by volume, is placing its bets on the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine candidate AZD1222 with CEO Adar Poonawalla stating he would start manufacturing at personal risk. In an e-mail interaction with Sohini Das, Poonawalla says the company is investing $200 million in the vaccine facility and that he wants to keep the price at below Rs 1,000. Edited excerpts:

According to the results of the first two phases of trials published in The Lancet, the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine candidate is safe and inducing an immune response. How optimistic are you?

I’m confident that the Oxford-AstraZeneca