Serum Institute of India's and Oxford's Covid-19 vaccine 'Covishield' gets expert panel nod in India

The Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer, has tied up with AstraZeneca to manufacture 'Covishield'

SII had applied to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for EUA for Oxford COVID-19 vaccine on December 6. An expert panel on COVID-19 from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has approved the emergency use of the Oxford vaccine 'Covishield' in the country on Friday.

The vaccine is being manufactured by Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII).

A meeting of the Subject Expert Committee (SEC) of the national drug regulator is still going on, according to ANI.

The SEC will make suitable recommendations to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), which will take the final decision on clearing the vaccine for use in India.

All states are set to conduct a COVID-19 vaccination dry run on Saturday (January 2). The dry run is proposed to be conducted in all state capitals, while some states will also include districts that are situated in difficult terrain or have poor logistical support.

The Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer, has tied up with AstraZeneca to manufacture Covishield.

Responding to queries from The New Indian Express, the Serum Institute of India had earlier confirmed that it has already produced 40 million doses under an at-risk manufacturing and stockpiling license from the Drugs Controller General of India and will be manufacturing up to 100 million doses by February 2021.

“We have already started manufacturing in small batches and hope to reach about 400 million doses by June-July 2021,” it said.

The UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) on Wednesday had approved the COVID-19 vaccine developed by scientists at Oxford University and produced by AstraZeneca for human use.