Western sanctions will not impact supply of S-400 missile systems to India: Russia
New Delhi, Mar 3: Russia on Wednesday said there will be no impact of the Western sanctions against it on the supply of S-400 missile systems to India.
At a media briefing, Russian Ambassador-designate Denis Alipov also referred to a bilateral mechanism to do business in national currencies.
"As regards the S-400 deal, be rest assured that it will not be impacted in any way. It is a 100 per cent surety.... As regards the overall trade and economic cooperation, we will see what will be the ultimate impact of those severe restrictions that are being imposed," he said.
The Western countries have imposed severe sanctions on Russia in the last few days following its military invasion of Ukraine.
In October 2018, India had signed a USD 5 billion deal with Russia to buy five units of the S-400 air defence missile systems, despite a warning from the Trump administration that going ahead with the contract may invite US sanctions.
Russia has already started the supply of the missile systems.
To a question on the impact of the sanctions on bilateral trade, Alipov said it will largely depend on the readiness of the "Indian partners" to continue with the engagement.
"We have bilateral mechanisms and means of doing business in national currencies. Much will depend on the readiness of the Indian partners to continue the business because some of them are over-cautious as regards their exposure to the US and European markets," he said.
Replying to a question on whether the Western sanctions and the conflict in Ukraine will impact the overall delivery of key defence equipment to India, Alipov said there are mechanisms in place to offset the impact of the restrictions.
"Russia has always risen from the ashes. It will rise again. Do not have any doubt about that. We have taken steps to secure ourselves," he said.
"Our economy is stable and I believe we will withstand the pressure that we are experiencing and will experience in the future," the Russian ambassador-designate added.
"As regards the bilateral trade in defence, we have the mechanism of cooperation and transactions independent of western mechanisms," he said.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
