Highlights
- So far, DCGI has given emergency use authorisation to only 2 COVID vaccines
- Sputnik V, the Russian COVID-19 vaccine has an effectiveness of 91.6%
- Sputnik V is being manufactured in India by Dr Reddy's
New Delhi: Russia’s Sputnik V got approval from the Subject expert committee (SEC) for Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA), ma king it the third COVID-19 vaccine to get clearance in India. According to sources, the SEC approved Dr Reddy’s application for EUA to Sputnik V. The decision comes after the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI)’s SEC met today to take up Sputnik V application for EUA in India. Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, last week sought the government’s approval for the vaccine to be used in India. The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) partnered with Dr Reddy’s in September 2020 to conduct clinical trials of Sputnik V in India. DCGI had then sought additional data from drugmaker Dr Reddy’s Laboratories on its Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine trial.
India is currently manufacturing two COVID-19 vaccines, — Serum Institute of India’s locally-made Oxford Covid-19 vaccine ‘Covishield’ and Bharat Biotech’s indigenously manufactured Covaxin. On Sunday (April 11), government sources told ANI that by end of the third quarter of this year, India will be getting vaccines from five additional manufacturers.
India currently has two COVID-19 vaccines being manufactured locally: Covishield and Covaxin, and we can expect five more vaccines by Q3 2021. These vaccines are Sputnik V vaccine (in collaboration with Dr. Reddy’s), Johnson & Johnson vaccine (in collaboration with Biological E), Novavax vaccine (in collaboration with Serum India), Zydus Cadila’s vaccine, and Bharat Biotech’s Intranasal Vaccine. Safety and efficacy are the Union government’s primary concerns while granting emergency use authorisation (EUA) to any COVID-19 vaccine in the country, the sources had told ANI.
The Russian vaccine has an effectiveness of 91.6 per cent. Russia registered Sputnik V for public use in August, the first country to do so, though the approval came before the start of the large-scale trial in September. The EUA of Sputnik V comes at a time when India is facing the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic with the number of new cases increasing each day.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV – Dettol Banega Swasth India campaign is an extension of the five-year-old Banega Swachh India initiative helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. It aims to spread awareness about critical health issues facing the country. In wake of the current 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 highlights the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children to prevent maternal and child mortality, fight malnutrition, stunting, wasting, anaemia and disease prevention through vaccines. Importance of programmes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Mid-day Meal Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyan and the role of Aganwadis and ASHA workers are also covered. 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 become a Swasth or healthy India. The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene.
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