Corporate social responsibility rules that kicked in on Friday also set a three year time-limit for any CSR project, among a series of other amendments introduced by the government.
The vaccine was well tolerated in all dose groups with no vaccine-related adverse events.
CII has also called for tax incentives for new health care projects and import duty relief for lifesaving equipment.
Pfizer sought to participate in the Subject Expert Committee consultations towards an emergency use authorisation for its Covid-19 vaccine. However, the company representatives have been unable to participate in the meetings because of extremely short notices of a few hours or less and time-zone limitations.
Serum Institute already has two deals of 100 million each to supply the Oxford-AstraZeneca and the Novavax vaccine to Gavi-Covax at $3 per dose.
A draft proposal by the sub-committee of the insolvency law committee has recommended that the corporate debtor (CD) may initiate the prepack since it may prove difficult to implement if creditors are allowed to do so without the willingness of the promoter.
'Safety is my first priority.' 'I need to ensure that any drug or vaccine that our citizens get is first safe.'
The Covishield maker's forte throughout the past half a century has been a combination of affordable vaccines and high volumes. Its tetanus, diphtheria and measles vaccines are known throughout the world, reports Sohini Das.
'I would go for Bharat Biotech's Covaxin and not Covishield, and that is my personal judgment since at least 11,500 have got at least one dose by now and it has proven to be safe.'
'We are hoping by March, the government allows us to export and give it to the private market.'
'The government should put the whole road map together for the vaccine and decide how industry can support...' 'They should allow the private sector to vaccinate.'
The expert committee sought more information from Serum Institute regarding the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
The Serum Institute of India has stockpiled 40 mn-50 mn doses and is adding more every week. Most of these will come to India.
The primary objective was to get the adult vaccine as children rarely have a severe form of the disease. Once schools reopen, the demand for vaccines for children under 12 may soar.
Each of the larger states may need less than Rs 10,000 crore each to finance the exercise.
Bharat Biotech recruited 13,000 participants for the Phase-3 clinical trial of Covaxin. This is one of the largest efficacy trials held in the country.
At $37 per dose, the Pfizer vaccine is much more expensive compared to $3 per dose for the Covishield.
For vaccination, online registration is mandatory. Thereafter, eligible beneficiaries will be informed on their registered mobile number about the nearest vaccination facility, and the date and time of vaccination.
The vaccine would be first made available to the vulnerable population and eventually, it would be available in the private market for all.
Bharat Biotech is in the middle of conducting a phase 3 trial with 22,000 subjects.
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