Grateful US Announces Additional $25 Million For India’s Vaccination Programme

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New Delhi: A ‘grateful’ United States government will provide India an additional $25 million in financial assistance to support its vaccination programme.

Announcing the aid after delegation-level talks between the two sides, US secretary of state Antony Blinken said during a press briefing that this funding will help in saving lives by strengthening vaccine supply chains across India, which is yet to fully vaccinate even 10% of eligible population.

“This funding will contribute to saving a life by strengthening vaccine supply chain logistics, addressing misinformation, vaccine hesitancy and helping to train more healthcare workers,” Blinken said, stressing that both countries, hit hard by COVID-19, are determined to end the pandemic in India and the US.

Blinken, who is on a two-day visit to India, said his country will not forget the aid and assistance provided by India during the early phase of the pandemic last year.

“I am proud we could return the gesture to India,” Blinken stated.

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) had previously provided India more than $200 million worth of COVID-19 assistance.

Indian External Affairs minister S Jaishankar acknowledged the Biden administration’s response of keeping raw materials supply chain open for vaccine production in India and thanked the US for “exceptional” support during the second COVID-19 wave which ravaged India.