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NEW DELHI – (AP) – India, the world’s largest vaccine producer, will resume exports and surplus coronavirus vaccine donations in October after halting them during a devastating outbreak of domestic infections in April, the Minister of Health said on Monday.
Mansukh Mandaviya said surplus vaccines will be used to fulfill India’s “commitment to the world for the collective fight against COVID-19,” but vaccinating Indians will remain the government’s “top priority”.
India was to be a key supplier to the world and to the UN-backed vaccine equity initiative known as COVAX. It started exporting doses in January, but stopped doing so to immunize its own population during a massive rise in infections in April that pushed India’s health care system to the breaking point.
The halt in exports has left many developing countries without adequate supplies and delayed vaccines for millions of people.
Before stopping exports, India donated or sold 66 million doses of vaccine to nearly 100 countries.
Mandaviya did not specify how many doses would be exported. He said monthly production of coronavirus vaccine in India has more than doubled since April and is expected to rise to 300 million doses in October.
“We will help the world and take our responsibility to COVAX,” he said.
The Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, now produces around 150 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine each month, an increase of more than double since April.
Inoculations from India have increased in recent months.
A country of nearly 1.4 billion people, India has administered more than 800 million doses of vaccines. It administered at least one dose to over 62% of the eligible adult population and two doses to approximately 22%.
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