First Dose Of Sputnik V To Be Used As Precaution Dose, Recommends NTAGI Panel

The two doses of Sputnik V have separate compositions. However, there is no policy decision on providing the precaution dose to those inoculated with the Russian vaccine yet. 

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New Delhi: The first dose of the Sputnik V vaccine can be administered as a precaution dose to all those who have been vaccinated with the Russian Covid-19 vaccine, a National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) panel has recommended, official sources told news agency PTI on Saturday. 

The two doses of Sputnik V have separate compositions. However, there is no policy decision on providing the precaution dose to those inoculated with the Russian vaccine yet. 

The CoWIN portal also does not show the option of precaution dose for Sputnik V yet. Due to this, many recipients of Sputnik V who took the second dose in July last year, are unable to get the booster shot. The two doses of the Russian vaccine are administered at a gap of 21-30 days. 

The first dose of the vaccine contains a recombinant adenovirus type 26 (rAd26-S) and the second dose a recombinant adenovirus 5 (rAd5-S), an official explained to PTI. 

"The NTAGI's Standing Technical Sub-Committee (STSC) which held its meeting on Friday discussed the issue and recommended that Sputnik Light which has the same component of Sputnik V's first dose will be given as the precaution dose," an official source was quoted as saying by PTI.

The NTAGI is an advisory committee comprising multidisciplinary experts responsible for providing information and recommendations to the government for making evidence-based decisions regarding vaccine and immunisation policy.

Meanwhile, as per PTI, the Union Health Ministry has received several representations over the precaution dose of Sputnik V. 

As per PTI sources, more than six lakh people were administered the Sputnik V vaccine