Dr Randeep Guleria, Director of AIIMS Delhi, said that India will have the Covid vaccine in a few days. (Archive)
New Delhi:
Calling the approval of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine for use in the UK as a “big step forward”, AIIMS Delhi Director Dr Randeep Guleria said on Wednesday that India will have the COVID-19 vaccine in a few days. .
“It is very good news that AstraZeneca has obtained approval for its vaccine from the UK regulatory authorities. They have strong data and in India and the Serum Institute of India is developing the same vaccine. This is a big step forward not only for India but many parts of the world, “Dr. Guleria told ANI in an interview.
“This vaccine can be stored between two and eight degrees Celsius. Therefore, it would be easy to store and transport. Storage can be done using a simple refrigerator instead of what is required in the Pfizer vaccine of minus 70 degrees Celsius.” , All India Institute Of Medical Sciences, said Dr. Guleria, director of New Delhi.
On the subject of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign in India, he said, “India will launch COVID-19 vaccines in a large part of the country and therefore we will see the vaccine available in our country in the very near future.”
When asked how long it takes for the COVID vaccine to roll out in the country, Dr Guleria said: “We now have data and the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine has been approved based on studies in the UK, Brazil and the South. Africa. There is also data from the Serum Institute of India (SII). I think once the data is shown to the regulatory authority we should get the approval for the vaccine in the county in a few days. I would say days instead weeks or months. ” Dr. Guleria, who is a member of the national working group on Covid-19 management, said the country has a “solid plan when it comes to vaccination.”
“We vaccinate children and pregnant women as part of our universal immunization program. Using the same platform to store vaccines from 2 to 8 degrees Celsius, it will be easier for us to store COVID-19 vaccines ”, he added while emphasizing the ease of storage process compared to the Pfizer vaccine of minus 70 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, the Pune-based Serum Institute of India has sought emergency approval for the vaccine, Covishield, developed in conjunction with global pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford.
In what might be called a New Year’s gift, Adar Poonawalla, executive director of the Serum Institute of India, said on Monday that between 40 and 50 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have already been stored, adding that the launch is expected. from Covishield in January.
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