India’s shortage of Covid-19 vaccines that precludes immediate inoculation for all adults is rooted in the Narendra Modi government’s lack of funding for key vaccines under development and evaluation, experts have said.
The experts, who have tracked global vaccine efforts, said the Indian government’s lack of investments contrasted with the actions of many countries, including America and Britain, that provided advance funding to vaccine makers and signed purchase pacts with them.
The Centre had last November announced a Rs 900-crore project, coordinated by the Union science ministry’s department of biotechnology, for Covid-19 vaccines.
But none of this money went to either Covishield, the AstraZeneca vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India at Pune, or Covaxin, the home-grown vaccine made by the Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech. Instead, a part of it was given to candidate vaccines that were at more nascent stages of development.
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Although official words have not yet come but the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly begun in India amidst the earlier hope and hype that the country had nearly won the battle against the deadly Wuhan coronavirus unleashed on the humanity in the beginning of the year 2020 by some accident or wilful release by the communist country. Such a hope was not without valid reasons because by mid-February 2021 the total number of daily corona positive cases had come down to approximately nine thousand, of which just two Indian states, namely Maharashtra and Kerala, accounted for more than two-third of the daily cases. However, contrary to the trend-based guestimates and a large-scale vaccination programme undertaken, the number of daily reported Covid-19 cases has jumped to over eighty-nine thousand on 2nd April spreading gloom all over the country yet again.
Bharat Biotech, makers of India s first indigenous vaccine for Covid-19, has advised people not to take Covaxin if they have allergies, fever, bleeding disorder, are on blood thinners, immune-comrpomised, or are on medicines that affect .
Covaxin
Bharat Biotech reiterated that the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) had authorised the restricted use of Covaxin under clinical trial mode . Individuals who are prioritised under the public health programme of the Health Ministry will be covered under this endeavour. Informing the individuals about the offer to vaccinate them with Covaxin will rest with the respective government programme officials. Those offered Covaxin at pre-specified booths will have the option to receive or reject the administration of the vaccine, says the fact sheet that surfaced on Tuesday.
Company sources told IANS that the fact sheet was issued last week.
5.5 lakh corona vaccine doses to reach Patna on Tuesday
By IANS |
Published on
Tue, Jan 12 2021 14:12 IST |
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5.5 lakh corona vaccine doses to reach Patna on Tuesday (Credit: Twitter). Image Source: IANS News
Patna, Jan 12 : The first consignment of 5.5 lakh doses of Covishield vaccine against coronavirus will arrive in Patna by a SpiceJet flight on Tuesday, a health official said. Another 4.5 lakh doses will arrive on Wednesday.
The vaccine doses have been dispatched by the Serum Institute of India at Pune in Maharashtra. The vaccine doses will be stored at the Bihar government s facility at the Nalanda Medical Collage and Hospital in the state capital.