No compromise on scientific, regulatory norms of COVID-19 vaccine: Harsh Vardhan
By TIOL News Service
NEW DELHI, DEC 11, 2020: HEALTH Minister Mr Harsh Vardhan on Thursday said that no compromise has been made on scientific and regulatory norms in the development and trials of the COVID-19 vaccine.
In his address to the World Bank's high-level inter-ministerial meeting on "Vaccination of South Asia against COVID-19," Mr Harsh Vardhan spoke of India's vaccine distribution expertise, along with its production and storage capacity, and the vast network of experienced professionals to streamline the vaccination campaign.
"India's world-class research institutes have spearheaded the campaign against COVID-19 and are currently working towards facilitating capacity building for producing, distributing and administering the vaccine," he said.
There are 260 vaccine candidates worldwide in different stages of development, of which eight are scheduled to be manufactured in India, including three indigenous ones. These include Astra Zeneca and Oxford University developed Covishield, Bharat Biotech's Covaxin, and ZyCOV-D by Zydus Cadilla.
"With stringent oversight, we are ensuring, that there is no compromise on scientific and regulatory norms, stretching from safety of the trials to efficacy of the vaccines," said the Health Minister.
He however, assured that the vaccine will be available in the coming few weeks and the vaccination process will kick start as soon as it is approved by the Drugs Controller General of India.
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