Govt seals deal with Bio-E for 30 crore jabs

■ ‘India in talks with pharma giants and G-7, G-20, Quad, Brics’

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While it continues to negotiate with Pfizer and Moderna for the supply of Covid-19 vaccines in India, the Centre has also signed a deal for 30 crore vaccines with Hyderabadbased Biological-E that is making India’s second indigenous vaccine after Covaxin.

“The vaccine by Biological-E is currently undergoing Phase 3 clinical trials after showing promising results in Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials. The vaccine being developed by Biological-E is an RBD protein subunit vaccine and is likely to be available in the next few months. These 30 crore doses will be manufactured and stockpiled by Biological-E from August to December 2021. For this, the Union ministry of health would be making an advance payment of `1,500 crore to Biological-E,” Union health ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

Health ministry officials said the arrangement with Biological-E is part of the wider endeavour of the Centre to encourage indigenous vaccine manufacturers by providing support in Research and Development (R&D) as well as financial support.

The Biological-E Covid Vaccine candidate has been supported by the Centre from preclinical stage to Phase-3 studies during which the department of biotechnology has provided grant-in-aid of over Rs 100 crore and also partnered with it to conduct studies through its Research Institute Translational Health Science Technology Institute (THSTI), Faridabad.

Officials said the government is supporting development of five-six Covid-19 vaccine candidates. Some of these are now closer to getting a license for use in public health systems.

The Centre, which is hoping to meet its ambitious target of immunising the entire population by December 2021, said that it is in talks with major pharma firms to source and locally manufacture Covid-19 vaccines. Foreign secretary Harsh V. Shringla said that

while India is looking forward to WHO's nod for Bharat Biotech's indigenously developed Covaxin, the government has worked with key partners to ease regulatory disruptions to vaccine supply chains through diplomatic interventions.

He said a number of serious global conversations are underway on platforms such as the G7, G20, QUAD, BRICS, the United Nations and WHO itself.

"We are also part of discussions with major vaccine manufacturers like Pfizer, Johnson and Johnson, and Moderna about sourcing and possible local manufacturing of their vaccines in India. We have also helped to expedite the introduction of the Sputnik-V vaccine. Vaccines have complex supply chains. We have worked to ease regulatory disruptions to these supply chains with key partners through diplomatic interventions," Mr Shringla said. engaged

“We remain with the US vaccine manufacturers (for Covid vaccines) and are also separately engaged with the US administration for raw materials,” MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.

India on Thursday recorded 1.34 lakh fresh cases in the last 24 hours and daily detections of new positive cases remained less than two lakh for the seventh consecutive day. With 17.13 lakh active cases, the caseload has been below 20 lakh for three successive days and daily recoveries continue to outnumber the new detections for the 21st consecutive day. The national recovery rate has further climbed to 92.79 per cent while daily positivity rate at 6.21 per cent continues a trend of less than 10 per cent positivity for 10 continuous days.

Mumbai's Dharavi, that was once the epicenter, reported only one new positive case on Thursday and the total number of active cases in the area is 19. Delhi recorded 487 new cases and 45 deaths as its positivity rate dropped to 0.61 per cent.

A Maharashtra government minister on Thursday announced a five-phase relaxation of lockdown in the state, but the government later retracted it saying lockdown will continue like other parts of the country. “Relaxation of restrictions as per the situation in different areas is only under consideration and no decision has been taken”, a statement from the Maharashtra chief minister's office said.

Saying Covid-19 cases have decreased to half in the State, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee announced opening up of restaurants between 5 pm and 8 pm after all their staffers get vaccinated.

Karnataka, however, has extended the lockdown by a week. “Covid19 situation is worse, that is why we have extended the lockdown by one week. I am hoping that everything will be fine after one week,” Karnataka CM B.S. Yediyurappa said.