Coronavirus Outbreak
Soon, India Will Have Its Dedicated Vaccine Portal: Indian Council of Medical Research
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the country’s top medical research body is working to create a vaccine portal, as a repository for all information related to vaccine development in India
Highlights
- The ICMR vaccine portal will be made public by the next week, said Dr Panda
- Initially, the website will show data for COVID-19 vaccine: Dr Panda
- Overtime, ICMR vaccine portal will provide data on all kinds of vaccines
New Delhi: In a first in India, the country’s top medical research body is working to create an Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) vaccine portal, as a repository for all information related to vaccine development in India. The ICMR vaccine portal would be made public by the next week. In the first stage, the ICMR vaccine portal will reflect the information on COVID-19 vaccine in India. However, with time, the web portal will be strengthened with data available for all the vaccines used to prevent various diseases.
Also Read: COVID-19 Explainer: World Health Organisation’s Struggle For A Global COVID-19 Vaccine Plan
People can get all the update for a vaccine in India under one roof. As of now, all the information is scattered. Therefore, after the directions from DG, we are working to develop this ICMR vaccine portal. Initially, the website will show data for COVID-19 vaccine. But, in further, we will update the website with information for other vaccines too as ICMR is an institute of bio-medical research, Dr Samiran Panda, Scientist G & head of Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases (ECD), Division at ICMR told ANI.
“The Central government along with the ICMR is making all best efforts to combat coronavirus pandemic. Wearing masks, hand-hygiene and social distancing are preventive measures but at the same time vaccine development is another important aspect which will be updated on the ICMR vaccine portal,” said Dr Panda.
Also Read: Status Of Various Candidate Vaccines For COVID-19 Presented Before Government: Health Ministry
The scientist added that the ICMR vaccine portal will be made public by the next week.
It may be noted that three COVID vaccine candidates are in India which are in different phases of the clinical study.
The first is–inactivated virus vaccine, which is the ‘Bharat Biotech Vaccine’, being developed in collaboration with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
Similarly, the second is a ‘DNA vaccine’ of pharma giant called Zydus Cadila.
The third is a ‘Recombinant Oxford University vaccine’ manufactured by Serum Institute of India (SII) got approval from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) to conduct phase 2 and phase 3 clinical study in the country.
According to the scientist, the ICMR vaccine portal will have sections like-COVID-19 vaccine, India’s initiative, International Symposium and FAQ for the general public (which would be presented in regional language).
The vaccine portal will also fetch the information related to COVID-19 vaccine from the World Health Organisation (WHO) as available on their website.
So far, India has reported 29,75,702 coronavirus cases with 55,794 people died due to the infection. In the last 24 hours, the country has seen 69,878 cases and 945 deaths as per the Union Health Ministry data.
(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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