Bharat Biotech vaccine may cost less than Serum's; govt working on pricing

Ahead of the massive inoculation drive starting next week, the government is engaged with the vaccine makers to discuss their final pricing, according to people in the know. They indicated that Hyderabad-based player Bharat Biotech could price its indigenous candidate Covaxin lower than Covishield—the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute of India.

The final contract is expected to be signed soon. Pricing took time as the government tried to get the best deal possible for the initial roll out. "Bharat Biotech is likely to price its vaccine very competitively and lower than its competitor. Historically too, the firm has quoted competitive