India vs Corona 3.0 e-Conclave: Green Passport Matter Should Be Resolved By August, Says NTAGI Chairman NK Arora

Around 45- 50 crore vaccines will be distributed by July, and around 185 crore vaccines should be available by December which will help achieve the target, said NK Arora.

File Photo.

New Delhi: Indian citizens who have received the Covishield jabs will soon get relief as the companies are trying to resolve the matter by August, said NK Arora, chairman, the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation in India (NTAGI), at India vs Corona 3.0 e-Conclave conducted by ABP News on Thursday.

On addressing concerns of those who received Covishield dosage will not get Green Pass, Arora said, “It’s about the timing and the government has also expressed its concerns and the Indian pharma companies are going to provide the dossiers soon to the concerned authorities which should be resolved by 4-6 weeks. These two vaccines should be approved by August.” 

While talking to ABP News on the vaccination drive picking up its pace, Arora exuded confidence in achieving the target by December. “The experience in vaccine doses in the last 10 days has been extremely positive, and a lot of people have come forward for immunization. Around 12 crore people in June have been vaccinated. And almost 30 crore people have been vaccinated so far,” said Arora.

The fear and concerns regarding vaccination have faded and availability of vaccines has also increased from June and the supply has been gone up across distribution centres.

However, the increases in the number of distribution centres have also helped the vaccination drive.

There was never any doubt regarding the gap in Covaxin which is 4-6 weeks between the two doses, 3-6 weeks in Sputnik V, and the gap in Moderna also remains 4-6 weeks. On the controversy regarding the increase in Covishield dosage, Arora said initially the gap was 4-6 weeks which was increased after the WHO advisory and in May the gap was further increased. “During that time there were inputs from the UK apart from several studies conducted in India also noted that even one dose can help in protection against the severe disease. The decision was taken based on research, and a recent study from the UK also reiterated this stand saying that more antibodies have been found to be formed if the gap is longer.”

The chairman stated that a vaccine tracking platform developed under the guidance of ICMR will help people track the availability of vaccines. The production of vaccines has been increased rapidly and 10 crore vaccines will be produced every month.

“Around 45- 50 crore vaccines will be distributed by July and in the coming five months there will be the addition of 30 crore vaccines by end of the year. Around 185 crore vaccines should be available by December which will help achieve the target,” said Arora.

The two vaccines -Covishield and Covaxin of 20-23 crore dosages will be produced. Sputnik will also start manufacturing in India by July. The foreign vaccines will also add to the total number of vaccines available.

Even as variants remain a concern because the mutation can’t be controlled, the biggest relief is that the major vaccines in India are able to protect against the severe symptoms of the disease, added Arora.