Pharma Companies In Talks With Govt For Making Monkeypox Vaccine: Report

Monkeypox Vaccine: Dr VK Paul, member of NITI Aayog on Monkeypox Vaccine, said there is no need to panic and India is fully prepared against the disease.

New Delhi: Amid the rising cases of monkeypox, the private pharma companies have initiated discussions with the Centre to explore options of developing a potential vaccine for Monkeypox, said sources on Wednesday as quoted by news agency ANI. “The vaccine against monkeypox is under discussion with various vaccine manufacturing companies, but it is a very early stage for any such decisions. If it is required then we have potential manufacturers. If it is required in future then options will be explored,” sources told ANI.

There is no such next-generation vaccine specifically for monkeypox and the virus has also been mutated, said one of the vaccine manufacturing companies. “In future, there will be a requirement for the vaccine if cases rise,” the company said.

Dr VK Paul, member of NITI Aayog on Monkeypox Vaccine, said there is no need to panic and India is fully prepared against the disease.

“Our disease surveillance system has been energized even more to investigate such cases. The situation is under control, no reason to worry and panic,” Dr Paul said.

“We have to play a responsibility in case there is some individual who has symptoms who should come for diagnosis because this disease has to be represented differently. The individual could be taken care of. We have such systems and restrictions have already been issued. People with symptoms must come forward and report,” he said.

Monkeypox was declared a global health emergency by World Health Organization (WHO) on Saturday. However, the WHO chief Dr Tedros also said that “discrimination could be as harmful as the virus.”

Earlier, Dr Poonam Khetrapal Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia said that cases of monkeypox are now reported in those countries also where no cases were reported before.

“The unexpected appearance of this disease globally and in a wide geographic area indicates that the disease may have been circulating below the detection of the surveillance systems. It is possible that sustained human-to-human transmission through close contact – direct or indirect – remained undetected for a period of time,” she said. 

(With ANI inputs)