Covaxin gets WHO approval

On Nov 4, 2021

Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin has got WHO approval on Wednesday as the technical advisory team has recommended the India-made vaccine for emergency use listing for 18 years and above. This marks a major victory for India’s journey in vaccination against Covid-19. Covaxin is a vaccine, completely ‘made in India’, by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech and the Indian Council of Medical Research. The emergency listing got delayed last month as the technical advisory group sought some additional clarification from Bharat Biotech for its final risk assessment. The technical advisory group met on Wednesday to take the final call, and Covaxin has been recommended for emergency use listing.

The technical advisory group is an independent advisory body that provides recommendations to WHO for approval of vaccines. The team met last October 26 and sought additional clarifications from Bharat Biotech which the company submitted. The team went through those data on Wednesday and gave its nod that Covaxin can be listed for emergency use under the EUL procedure.

Covaxin has demonstrated 77.8 per cent effectiveness against symptomatic COVID-19 and 65.2 per cent protection against the new Delta variant. (HT)