India Might Have A Coronavirus Vaccine By The End Of This Year

India is set to have a vaccine against the coronavirus by the end of 2020. Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Harsh Vardhan said a COVID-19 vaccine is likely in the next 4-5 months.

"I hope that if everything goes well, India will have access to a coronavirus vaccine by the end of 2020," he later tweeted.

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¡ª Dr Harsh Vardhan (@drharshvardhan) August 22, 2020

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said one of the three COVID-19 vaccine candidates has entered the third phase of the pre-clinical human trial.

Reuters

According to VK Paul, head of the national task force on COVID-19, the vaccine candidate entering the third phase has yielded encouraging results in the initial phases of its trial. He said the other two vaccines are currently in Phase-I or II of their pre-clinical trials.

The Oxford University-AstraZeneca vaccine candidate - Covishield - is completing its trials soon, and will be commercialised in 73 days, a top official at Serum India told India Today.

Serum Institute of India is handling phase 3 of the trials. The vaccine is developed by Oxford University and is likely to move to production to India.

Reuters

A Business Today report quoted a Serum Institute of India (SII) top official saying that the government has given the biotechnology company "a 'special manufacturing priority license' and fast-tracked the trial protocol processes to get the trials completed in 58 days."

The phase 3 trials began August 22 at 20 centers across the country. The vaccine will be administered to 1,600 people in this phase.

The report added that the Indian government has sought 68 crore doses for 130 crore Indians, from Serum Institute by June next year.