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India has formally approved the use of two coronavirus vaccines as it prepares for the world’s biggest inoculation drives.

 

The drugs regulatory agency gave the green light to the jabs developed by AstraZeneca with Oxford University and by local firm Bharat Biotech.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also adresses it and called it “a decisive turning point”.

 

India plans to vaccinate for around 300 million people this year.

It has recorded the second-highest number of infections within the world, with quite 10.3 million confirmed cases so far . Nearly 150,000 people have died.

On Saturday India held nationwide drills to organize quite 90,000 health care workers to administer vaccines across the country, which features a population of 1.3 billion people.

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The Drugs Controller General of India said both manufacturers(Bharat Biotech and Oxford) had submitted data showing their vaccines were safe to use.

The Oxford’s AstraZeneca vaccine is being manufactured locally by the Serum Institute of India. It is the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer. It says it’s producing quite 50 million doses a month.

Adar Poonawalla, the company’s CEO, told the BBC in November that he aimed to build up production to 100 million doses a month after receiving regulatory approval.

 

The jab, which is understood as Covishield in India, is run in two doses given between four and 12 weeks apart. It are often safely stored at temperatures of 2C to 8C, about an equivalent as a domestic fridge, and may be delivered in existing health care settings like doctors’ surgeries.

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This makes it easier to distribute than a number of the opposite vaccines. The jab developed by Pfizer/BioNTech – which is currently being administered in several countries – must be stored at -70C and may only be moved a limited number of times – a specific challenge in India, where summer temperatures can reach 50C.

India, which makes about 60% of vaccines globally, plans to immunise about 300 million people by July 2021. it’ll prioritise health care workers, the emergency services, and people who are clinically vulnerable due to age or pre-existing conditions.

 

Right now, India’s existing vaccination programme reaches about 55 million people a year, administering 390 million free jabs against a dozen diseases. It stocks and tracks the vaccines through a well-oiled electronic system.

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Pfizer, whose vaccine has already been approved to be used in jurisdictions including the united kingdom , the US and therefore the EU, is additionally seeking emergency authorisation in India.

In all, some 30 vaccine candidates are being developed in India.