Pune based Serum Institute of India (SII) has brought down the price of Covishield vaccine for COVID-19 from Rs 400 to Rs 300, as a philanthropic gesture.

"I hereby reduce the price to the states from Rs.400 to Rs.300 per dose, effective immediately; this will save thousands of crores of state funds going forward. This will enable more vaccinations and save countless lives", tweeted Adar Poonwalla, CEO, SII, on April 28th.

Soon after this announcement, Hyderabad based Bharat Biotech has also brought down the price of Covaxin, from Rs 600 to Rs 400.

"We wish to be transparent in our approach to pricing which was determined by internally funded product development, several operationally intensive BSL-3 manufacturing facilities and clinical trials. Recognising the enormous challenges to the public healthcare system, we have made Covaxin available to state governments at a price of Rs 400/dose", as stated on the company's twitter handle, on April 29th.