India orders 300 million doses of unapproved coronavirus jabs

According to details, the vaccine that has not been named as yet and is in Phase 3 trials has shown "promising results" in the first two phases.

The $206m order is the first India has signed for a jab that has not received emergency approval.

India has so far inculcated over 220 million people although much of its 1.4 billion populations are now eligible for the vaccine.

Less than 10% of the country has received at least one dose of the vaccination, largely because of a severe shortage of doses.

Although Covid case numbers are declining in India, the country is still adding more than 100,000 news cases a day. It has recorded more than 340,000 deaths from the virus so far, but experts say the number is vastly underestimated.

India's federal government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has been criticized for not placing orders with foreign vaccine manufacturers on time to tackle the deadly wave.