Serum Institute of India is the world's largest vaccine manufacturer by number of doses produced. It is located in the city of Pune.
It was founded by Dr. Cyrus Poonawalla in 1966 and has globally sold more than 1.5 billion doses of vaccines. This includes Polio, Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis, Hib, BCG, r-Hepatitis B, Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccines.
Vaccines manufactured by the Serum Institute are accredited by the World Health Organization. They are being used in around 170 countries across the globe in their national immunization programs.
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It is estimated that about 65% of the children in the world receive at least one vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute.
The Central government placed a purchase order with the Serum Institute of India for 11 million doses of Oxford COVID-19 vaccine, Covishield, at a cost of ₹210 per dose.
After the first 100 million doses, the vaccine would be sold at ₹1000 a dose in private markets, said Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla.
