(file photo)
Speed Post News Network
New Delhi : Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on October 4, 2020, responded to questions posed by social media users in the fourth episode of Sunday Samvaad. The COVID Vaccine was the dominant theme in the mind of those who chose to submit questions for the episode. He also patiently explained related topics like the use of Plasma Therapy in COVID, eradication of TB by 2025 in light of the COVID pandemic, and the opening up of India’s schools.
On the questions of prioritising the distribution of vaccine, Dr Vardhan said the Health Ministry is currently preparing a format in which States will submit lists of priority population groups to receive vaccine, especially health workers engaged in the management of COVID19. The list of frontline health workers will include both government as well as private sector doctors, nurses, paramedics, sanitary staff, ASHA workers, surveillance officers and many other occupational categories involved in tracing, testing, and treatment of patients. This exercise is targeted to be completed by the end of October 2020 and the States are being closely guided to also submit details about cold chain facilities and other related infrastructure which will be required down to the block level.
The Centre is also working on plans for building capacities in HR, training, supervision etc on a massive scale and roughly estimates to receive and utilise 400-500 million doses covering approximately 20-25 crore people by July 2021. He further informed that the Government is also keeping an eye on immunity data with regard to COVID-19 disease while finalising these plans, according to a PIB release.
He stated that there is a high level committee under the chairmanship of Niti Aayog Member (Health) V K Paul which is drawing up the entire process. Vaccine procurement is being done centrally and each consignment will be tracked real time until delivery to ensure it reaches those who need it most.
Clearing glaring misconceptions that seem to have captured the imagination of rumour mongers in pockets of Punjab, Dr Vardhan strongly rebutted allegations that the COVID-19 pandemic was a government conspiracy to enable organ harvesting of healthy individuals. He stated that the Government is not tied to fiscal considerations from financing agencies for implementation of the COVID-19 emergency response in light of the recent loan from the World Bank- Asian Infrastructural Investment Bank and the Asian Development Bank to the tune of Rs 15,000 Crore for managing COVID.
Replying to queries, Dr Vardhan said that it is not possible to comment on the superiority of one vaccine over the other although he would ensure that even if we have multiple vaccine available, they will all be safe and will elicit the requisite immune response against novel coronavirus. He said that all vaccines that have proven to be safe, immunogenic and efficacious in clinical trials outside India need to undergo bridging studies to prove their safety and immunogenicity in the Indian population as well although these studies can be conducted with much smaller sample size and end quickly.
While tackling a question on the level playing field for various clinical trials, Dr Vardhan shared that all proposed clinical trials in India are designed using set principles and are stringently reviewed by the Subject Expert Committee set up by the Drug Controller General of India. On a question regarding Phase 3 Clinical Trial of Russia’s “Sputnik-V” vaccine in India, Dr Vrdhan clarified that the matter is still under consideration, and no decision has been taken as yet on the Phase 3 trials.
Stating that adverse events developing after vaccination are common, Dr Vardhan said that adverse events after vaccination include local reactions such as pain at the injection site, mild fever and redness, anxiety-related such as palpitations, syncope or fainting and that these events are transient, self-limiting, and do not affect the protective response of the vaccine. India has robust processes in place to ensure the vaccine that successfully complete the clinical trials are safe and effective against the novel coronavirus.
Sharing his views on single-dose vs. double-dose vaccines, Dr Vardhan accepted that for quick control of a pandemic, it is desirable to have a single-dose vaccine.
On the opening up of schools, he mentioned the MHA Guidelines states students may attend school only with the written consent of parents and that attendance will not be enforced upon the students. Schools that are allowed to open will have to mandatorily follow the SOPs set by government, he said.