Govt. prioritizes approval for foreign vaccines | Fusion - WeRIndia

Currently, India is the second most affected nation by Covid-19 in the world. The country is witnessing a massive surge of COVID-19 cases day by day.

Considering the rising COVID-19 cases and shortage of vaccines in the country, the Indian government prioritized approval for foreign-produced vaccines.

The emergency approval helps boost the inoculation process in India. The clearance process will be similar to that used in other countries.

As per sources, five more COVID-19 vaccines will be approved this year. They are expected to be in the market by October this year.

Here are the details about the government’s approval for different foreign-produced COVID-19 vaccines:

• Some COVID-19 vaccines developed in other countries have been given emergency approval for restricted use in these countries like the US, Japan, the UK etc. The Centre decided to give emergency approval for such vaccines to be used in the country. Besides, the vaccines which are listed in WHO Emergency Use may also be approved in India.
• The Union Health Ministry said that the approved foreign-produced vaccines would be evaluated for seven days for safety after being inoculated to 100 beneficiaries initially. If they are proven to be safe, they will be rolled out for further vaccination drive in the country.
• Sputnik V, the Russian vaccine, which is developed in collaboration with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, has been permitted for the restricted emergency use in the country. Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) approved Sputnik V with certain conditions.
• It is the third approved vaccine for COVID-19 in India. As per the published data, Sputnik V has 91.6% efficacy. It is likely to protect severe COVID-19 cases as well.
• Dr Reddy’s Laboratories will import the Sputnik V vaccine from Russia and receive around 10 crore doses of this vaccine in the next six months.

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