DELHI International Airport, India's busiest airport, has declared itself 'completely ready' to handle Covid-19 vaccines, reports Bloomberg News.
'But one of the key challenges will be the availability of cold chain across India,' warned Delhi airport CEO Videh Kumar Jaipuria, fearing remote areas may not be equipped with sufficient equipment.
New Delhi's airport - Indira Gandhi International - will be a main handling point and has facilities to store 2.7 million vials of vaccine at 2-to-8 degrees Celsius, as well as cooling chambers that can keep temperatures as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius, Mr Jaipuriar said.
'As soon as we get an indication on what's going to be the flow, we will do the final tune up and then we will be ready to go,' he said.
India is relying largely on two domestically made vaccines from Bharat Biotech International and the Serum Institute of India, which has partnered with AstraZeneca to produce at least one billion doses.
Ultra-cold storage requirements for Pfizer's shot make it an unlikely choice for widespread use given India's patchy health networks and infrastructure, especially in rural areas where the bulk of the country's nearly 1.4 billion people live.
'This is a huge logistics exercise that needs to be worked out in detail for the vaccine to reach every nook and corner,' Mr Jaipuriar said.
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'But one of the key challenges will be the availability of cold chain across India,' warned Delhi airport CEO Videh Kumar Jaipuria, fearing remote areas may not be equipped with sufficient equipment.
New Delhi's airport - Indira Gandhi International - will be a main handling point and has facilities to store 2.7 million vials of vaccine at 2-to-8 degrees Celsius, as well as cooling chambers that can keep temperatures as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius, Mr Jaipuriar said.
'As soon as we get an indication on what's going to be the flow, we will do the final tune up and then we will be ready to go,' he said.
India is relying largely on two domestically made vaccines from Bharat Biotech International and the Serum Institute of India, which has partnered with AstraZeneca to produce at least one billion doses.
Ultra-cold storage requirements for Pfizer's shot make it an unlikely choice for widespread use given India's patchy health networks and infrastructure, especially in rural areas where the bulk of the country's nearly 1.4 billion people live.
'This is a huge logistics exercise that needs to be worked out in detail for the vaccine to reach every nook and corner,' Mr Jaipuriar said.
SeaNews Turkey