New Delhi:
India is working to develop a vaccine to treat patients with COVID-19, which will cost $ 2-3 billion, said Professor K Vijay Raghavan, the government’s chief scientific advisor (PSA).
Professor Raghavan, speaking at a press conference, said the vaccine is given to the normal population, not to sick people. “It is therefore necessary that it is properly tested and that its quality and safety are assured.”
“The vaccine normally takes 10 to 15 years to develop and costs $ 200-300 million. Our effort is now to do it in one year. Therefore, we have to do parallel processing. Instead of working on a single COVID vaccine -19, the world is working on more than 100 vaccines at the same time, “he said.
“We need to speed up regulatory processes, increase manufacturing capacity and build distribution systems. So instead of $ 200-300 million, it will cost $ 2-3 billion,” added Professor Raghavan.
According to him, in India, three types of COVID-19 vaccine development efforts are underway.
“There are three types of COVID-19 vaccine development efforts that are undertaken – fully indigenous, collaboration with foreign actors where we lead and collaboration where others lead the development,” he said.
Professor Raghavan said that the RT-PCR test is to detect the presence of the virus and that it is agnostic, whether or not you have symptoms.
“Whether you are asymptomatic, if you have a virus, the RT-PCR test will detect it. We have not seen any change in the fundamental properties of the virus so far. In the coming months, national and international tests will be available that can be done on an individual, “he added.
Commenting on the developments in serological diagnostic tests announced by the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), Professor Raghavan said: “The ICMR and the laboratories of the Department of Biotechnology have developed the protocol for a test called an immunoassay -enzymatic (ELISA). a serological test in the sense that it examines the serum and tests the antibodies. The test is highly specific and sensitive. “
“The ICMR test is currently being deployed. This test has an important role to play, depending on the level of specificity and sensitivity. For use at an individual level, certain bars are necessary. If you do not have them , you can still use them for community testing when you know what the community prevalence is. There are other types of more sensitive testing that will happen in a few months, “he added.
Professor Raghavan also informed that the Indian Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) have embarked on a drug discovery hackathon to combat COVID-19.
He said that the hackathon is a high-end hackathon where students are trained with information on how to do computer drug discovery.
Professor Raghavan said that the manufacturing of vaccines in India is world class. “India is also one of the largest manufacturers of generics in the world. Our vaccine companies are now also engaged in vaccine development and R&D, not just manufacturing.”
“There are around 30 groups in India, including large industries, startups and academics, working on the development of COVID-19 vaccines. About 20 of them are on a good pace,” he said.
Professor Raghavan said that since vaccine development is a very risky process, many companies will store vaccines before they are even ready in the hope that it will work. “In this scenario, global consortia help to mitigate the risks and ensure equal access,” he added.
“When a vaccine is made, it’s not like a switch that will be available to everyone from day one. Everyone would need it. The logistics of making the COVID-19 vaccine accessible to all is a big challenge , this is under discussion now. ” he added.
Professor Raghavan said that while waiting for drugs and vaccines to fight COVID-19, we must do five things to gain COVID-19: hygiene, surface decontamination, physical remoteness, follow-up and testing.
“These are in our hands while we are waiting for drugs and vaccines,” he added.
Dr. VK Paul, member of NITI Aayog and President of Empowered Group 1, said that the fight against the coronavirus will be won through vaccines and drugs because the scientific and technological institutions and the pharmaceutical industry of India are very strong.
“The fight against the coronavirus will be won thanks to vaccines and drugs. The scientific and technological institutions and the pharmaceutical industry of our country are very strong. The Indian pharmaceutical industry is known as the world pharmacy and the vaccines made in India are used and are known around the world, “said Dr. Paul, who was also speaking at a press conference here.
Dr Paul, while highlighting India’s efforts in developing drugs, vaccines and testing technologies, said: “We are very proud of our solid scientific base, our solid pharmaceutical industry. All of our scientific institutes are fighting COVID-19. “
The central government has formed Empowered Group 1 to coordinate the medical emergency management plan for the coronavirus pandemic.
With 6,566 new cases of coronavirus and 194 deaths reported in the past 24 hours, the number of COVID-19 in India reached 1.58.333 on Thursday, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Welfare.
The number of active coronavirus cases stands at 86,110, while 67,692 people have recovered and one patient has migrated. Deaths due to infection reached 4,531 in the country.
