Ella rues lack of support from Indian scientists
An emotional and angry Dr Krishna Ella, chairman of Bharat Biotech on Monday lashed out at Indian scientists who were criticising Indian science and not supporting it. “They are creating doubts in the minds of people and a fear for the vaccine. Why don’t they read the peer reviewed journals which are there on the internet? Somebody has to go and read that for all the questions that they are asking.”
Upset that Indian scientists are bent on lashing their mates and not support them, Dr Ella asked them to check the five articles published by Bharat Biotech in peer reviewed journals. Bharat Biotech is on par with Pfizer, he said, adding that they were proud over their transparency and are clear about their data.
Dr Ella said: “Why are no doubts raised on the vaccine which is being tried on no more than 1,000 people in India? Why is no question being asked on the conditional per
mission that they have been granted?” He continued: “Unlike other companies, we have not given four gram of paractemol to suppress reactions, to our volunteers while trying the vaccine. We are very transparent and want real time data on any adverse effects. There will be only 10 per cent minor side effects but 90 per cent vaccine is safe.”
Saying “it hurts”, Dr Ella said, “Data of about 1,000 people is acceptable to the scientists but not data generated for 25,000 people. This is the largest trial for a vaccine in India in such a short time. I have experience of mak
ing vaccines and there are 16 of them in my company’s list. Why is a doubt raised when Bharat Biotech which is a biosafety level three facility in the world giving all data on immunogenicity and efficacy?”
Dr Ella also expressed displeasure over Covaxin being labelled as a backup for Covishield vaccine.
Upset that the vaccine was being politicized, Dr Ella said that he is not from a political family and does not patronize any political party. He said, “I am a scientist and I have developed the vaccine in the interest of public health.”