Centre Mulling To Reduce 12-Week Covishield Dose Gap, NTAGI Likely To Discuss Matter: Report

Covid-19 Vaccination: The gap between two doses of Covishield may be reduced. NTAGI will reportedly discuss the matter.

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New Delhi: The Union government is reportedly considering reducing the gap between two doses of the Covishield vaccine after the 12-week gap was set between the two vaccines.

News agency ANI quoted government sources as saying that reduction in the gap between Covisheild doses is being considered and the issue will be discussed in NTAGI i.e. National Technical Advisory Group of Immunisation in India.

Earlier, two of India's largest public health associations had written to the Central Government urging to reduce the gap of two doses from 12 weeks to 8 weeks.

The Indian Public Health Association and the Indian Association of Preventive and Social Medicine wrote letters to the government regarding this. It was said that the reduction in the gap can help prevent frequent mutations and infections.

The Indian Public Health Association and the Indian Association of Preventive and Social Medicine are bodies of community medicine. According to public health experts, when the vaccine trial began, the difference was four weeks which seemed to be effective, but later it was seen that the efficacy increases with the increased gap, and the side effects were reduced.

However, in this period, new strains of the virus had not emerged and breakthrough infection was not taking place, Dr. Sanjay Rai, President of Dean Public Health Association reportedly said.