Drugs Controller General of India has approved Covid-19 virus vaccine of Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech for restricted use in emergency situation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the DCGI approval of Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech vaccines a decisive turning point to strengthen the fight against coronavirus.
“It would make every Indian proud that the two vaccines that have been given emergency use approval are made in India! This shows the eagerness of our scientific community to fulfil the dream of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat, at the root of which is care and compassion,” Modi said on Twitter.
The vaccine approval comes at a time when the active cases continue to follow a steadily dipping path. The total active caseload has dropped to below 2.5 lakh on January 3. India’s present active caseload consists of just 2.39% of the country’s total positive cases.
The cold chain infrastructure is sufficient to ensure last mile delivery of COVID-19 vaccine in a temperature-controlled environment across the country, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said in a statement earlier. Sufficient supplies of syringes and other logistics have also been ensured to begin COVID-19 vaccination drive. Around 1,14,100 vaccinators have been trained on the process to be followed at the vaccination sites.
The Co-WIN software has been developed by MoHFW for real time information of vaccine stocks, their storage temperature and individualized tracking of beneficiaries for Covid-19 vaccine. This software will assist the program managers across all levels through automated session allocation for pre-registered beneficiaries, their verification and a digital certificate will be generated upon successful completion of the vaccine schedule. More than 75 lakh beneficiaries have been registered on Co-WIN software till date.
