By Neha Arora
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – India has approved Russia’s one-shot Sputnik Light COVID-19 vaccine for people who have not yet received a vaccine, the shot’s Indian manufacturer said on Monday.
Russia said on Sunday that India had approved Sputnik Light for emergency use, almost 10 months after it cleared the two-dose Sputnik V.
“The current restricted use in emergency situation approval from the DCGI (Drugs Controller General of India) to Sputnik Light is for the single-shot standalone vaccine,” a spokesperson for Indian drugmaker Dr Reddy’s told Reuters in an email.
“Our efforts to seek approval for Sputnik Light as a precautionary dose / booster are currently underway,” the spokesperson said.
The DCGI did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
India currently uses AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine in tandem with local firm Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin and has inoculated more than 75% of its 950 million adult population.
India has approved booster shots for frontline workers, as well as older citizens with co-morbidities, but has mandated that the booster shot be the same as the original one.
(Reporting by Neha Arora in New Delhi; Writing by Shilpa Jamkhandikar; Editing by Mark Potter)
