Mansukh Mandaviya, the Union Health Minister, said on Tuesday that a government panel of experts was looking into a Delta subvariant called AY.4.2 that had been discovered in the United Kingdom. He also stated that the World Health Organization’s (WHO) technical committee will vote on whether or not to grant Covaxin an emergency use listing (EUL) today.
“The novel Covid-19 version AY.4.2 is being investigated by a team… “The diverse varieties will be studied and analyzed by ICMR and NCDC specialists,” the Union Health Minister stated at a press briefing.
On the emergency authorization of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin, the health minister stated that WHO will issue the permission-based on today’s meeting.
“The WHO has a system in which a technical committee has authorized it (Covaxin), and another committee is convening today. “On the basis of today’s meeting, Covaxin will be approved,” Mansukh Mandaviya stated.
On Tuesday, the World Health Organization will discuss the Emergency Use Listing of Covaxin, an Indian-made vaccine against Covid-19. The WHO’s technical advisory panel will meet on October 26 to evaluate the much-desired emergency use listing for Covaxin, which is made by Bharat Biotech, according to WHO Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan.
He further stated that PM Modi has sanctioned 157 new medical colleges, nearly doubling the number of medical student seats. “We took a holistic approach to ensure that people could afford therapy,” he stated.
Meanwhile, official sources say that Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya will meet with state health ministers tomorrow to discuss scaling up vaccine administration.
On Tuesday, the Centre announced that 11 crore second doses were still outstanding. The administration is concerned about the situation and has convened a meeting with all state health ministers at Vigyan Bhawan tomorrow. The meeting will be held to speed vaccinations for individuals who have still to receive their second dosage as well as those who have not yet received their first dose.
Mandaviya, speaking about the Covid vaccination for children, said that pricing for the ZyCoV-D vaccine for children is being discussed.
He also stated that the government has decided to build 1,50,000 health and wellness centers to address diseases such as cancer and diabetes. In the country, over 79,000 of the above have been inaugurated, he noted.
