SII CEO Adar Poonawalla takes Covishield to 'endorse its safety'

Jan 16, 2021 15:27 IST

Serum Institute CEO Adar Poonawalla was given the first dose of the Covishield coronavirus vaccine on Saturday afternoon, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched India's nationwide vaccination drive. Poonawalla’s company is manufacturing the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University. He posted a video on Twitter, in which he is sitting on a couch as a man wearing a face mask injects the drug into his arm. He said he was taking the vaccine - which is right now reserved for frontline workers and healthcare staff to "endorse its safety and efficacy". PM had in his address at the launch of the vaccination drive hailed the Indian scientific community for its work in developing the vaccines and warned people against falling for propaganda or rumours about the safety or efficacy of the vaccines.