India To Make J&J's Single-Dose COVID-19 Vaccine Under Quad Initiative To Help Countries In Indo-Pacific Region: Report

In a major development, India will be manufacturing the single-dose COVID-19 vaccine developed by United States (US) based pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) as part of the first Quad vaccine initiative, reports Times of India.

The entire project will be financed by Japan and the US, while Australia will chip in its logistics capabilities to ship the Made in India vaccines to Southeast Asia and Pacific nations. India's role in the entire initiative will project and reinforce the country's credentials as a trustworthy and reliable manufacturer and supplier of quality vaccines.

The move will also bolster India's standing as the "pharmacy of the world".

The development comes as the four nations in the Quad grouping are set to hold their maiden leaders' summit today (12 March), wherein Prime Ministers (PMs) Narendra Modi, Yoshihide Suga, Scott Morrison and President Joe Biden will be coming together to pursue and advance mutual interests.

The maiden Quad leaders' summit also gains significance as it would mark one of the earliest multi-lateral summits by the new administration in the US led by President Biden. Before this, President Biden has only held a virtual meeting of the G-7 block of nations.