City-made Covaxin gets formal nod - Country\'s vaccine capital shining, says KTR
Hyderabad: City-based Bharat Biotech on Sunday described the permission for emergency use of Covaxin, the company’s homegrown vaccine for Covid-19, as a “giant leap for innovation and novel product development in India.”
Use of Covaxin, along with Oxford University-Astra Zeneca developed Covishield, manufactured in the country by Pune-based Serum Institute of India, was on Sunday formally approved for emergency use in India by the Drugs Controller General of India and Central Standards Control Organization who announced the decision at a news conference in New Delhi.
Reacting to the announcement, Industries Minister KT Rama Rao said: "Hyderabad continues to shine on as the vaccine capital because of the pursuit of excellence of scientists and innovative entrepreneurs." He tweeted a congratulatory message to Bharat Biotech team.
Meanwhile, the company’s chairman and managing director Dr Krishna Ella said “it is a proud moment for the nation and a great milestone in India’s scientific capability. Our goal is to provide global access to populations that need it the most. COVAXIN™ has generated excellent safety data with robust immune responses to multiple viral proteins.”
Covaxin, he said, was truly a product of public-private partnership between Indian Council for Medical Research, National Institute of Virology, and Bharat Biotech.
