Corbevax Vaccine Gets WHO Emergency Use Listing Authorisation

Hyderabad: India’s first indigenously developed COVID-19 vaccine, Corbevax, has been granted an Emergency Use Listing by the World Health Organisation, the company that manufactures it in India said here on Tuesday (January 16). Corbevax is based on a protein sub-unit platform and manufactured by the pharmaceutical firm Biological E Limited in India.

Mahima Datla, Managing Director of Biological E Ltd said:

We are pleased with the WHO Emergency Use Listing (EUL) because it would help us use the platform to continue developing COVID-19 vaccines as and when it starts impacting public health. We are confident that this endorsement from WHO will bolster our global fight against COVID-19.

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The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) had already approved Corbevax for restricted use in emergencies among adults, adolescents, and young children in a sequential manner from December 2021 to April 2022.

It was also approved for use as India’s first heterologous COVID-19 booster shot for adults aged 18 and above, in June 2022.

The company supplied 100 million doses of Corbevax to the central government which were then utilised in pan-India immunisation campaigns, mainly in children aged 12-14 years, the release said.

Ms Datla said that several companies that started vaccine development or manufacture during the COVID-19 pandemic exited later due to paucity of funds or lack of success. However, BE continued to remain committed to developing and providing access to high-quality and affordable vaccines globally, by constantly enlarging its portfolio of offerings, she added.

Also Read: Indian Institute of Science Professor, Collaborators Develop Potential Covid-19 Vaccine Candidate

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which in its Season 10 is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Ayushmann Khurrana. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In a world post COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental well-being, self-care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.