Introduction:
We have seen about the effects of the world famous and lethal Corona virus and its modified form in the previous articles. Now let us see more about what the virus has done to the world and how we are conquering against it. It has been more than a year since the virus has been identified and the world scientists have been struggling day and night to come up with a solution for lethal virus and after so many tests and trials they have finally come up with a permanent solution, which can otherwise be called as vaccination. Many foreign countries such as Britain, America, Switzerland, Malaysia have started injecting the approved vaccines in their countries.
What is a Vaccine?
Vaccines save millions of lives each year. Vaccines work by training and preparing the body’s natural defences (the immune system) to recognize and fight off the viruses and bacteria they target. If the body is exposed to those disease-causing germs later, the body is immediately ready to destroy them, preventing illness.
Vaccines Across the World:
Many pharmaceutical industries are working in collaboration with the World Health Organization and there are at least 50 COVID-19 vaccine candidates who have applied to the WHO to gain approval for their vaccines and the former will gain the much-needed approval only when WHO is satisfied with the response of the vaccine after the trials. Only a few vaccines have been given the green card to begin their rescue operation by WHO. They are Moderna vaccine, Pfizer vaccine, COVAX, COVAXIN, COVISHIELD, BNT162b2. These are some of the vaccines that are ready to roll out.
Vaccine in India:http://coronavirus-vaccines-in-india-heres-a-list-of-all-covid-19-vaccines-made-in-india
Following the footsteps of the well-developed countries, India has also taken the much-awaited initiative to provide COVID vaccine for the people. It has come as a relief for the people who were worried about the transportation of the newly developed COVID strain from Britain. The central health ministry has approved two vaccine candidates after witnessing the phase trials and those are COVAXIN by Bharat Biotech and COVISHIELD by Pune based serum Institute of India.
COVISHIELD:
Pune based Serum Institute of India has sought approval for its version of the vaccine developed by the Oxford University and AstraZeneca which it has been testing in India for the last few months. The candidate is currently in phase -III trials in India. In its application, Serum has submitted the safety data from Phase-I and phase-II trials, while the effectiveness data has been sourced from phase-III trials of the same vaccine in the UK and Brazil. This vaccine can be safely stored at a temperature of 2C to 8C, about the same as a domestic fridge.
COVAXIN:
Bharat Biotech is a Hyderabad-based company which is developing a vaccine, Covaxin in collaboration with National Institute of Virology, an ICMR institute in Pune, has started phase-III trials only recently, and is yet to enroll all the participants as per its design. Its application is based mainly on the safety data from phase-I and phase-II trials. It is India’s indigenous COVID-19 inactivated vaccine is developed and manufactured in Bharat Biotech’s BSL-3 high containment facility. The drugs Controller General V.G. Somani said it is “safe and provides a robust immune response”.
Who Will Get the Vaccination First?
Following the recommendation of the National Expert Group, Public and Private Healthcare Workers such as doctors, nurses, medical officers, paramedics and other supporting staff, including medical students will be vaccinated first.
Next. Frontline and Municipal Workers such as Central and State police department, the armed forces, disaster management forces, home guard, municipal workers and revenue service personnel engaged in COVID-19 containment activities are to be vaccinated alongside government and ministries of defense, home, housing and urban affairs personnel.
Population above 50 years of age and those with co-morbidities are to be allowed for vaccination long with the people in areas with higher infection rate. After the priority is over, the remaining population will be inoculated in a staggered manner.
How to Register for Vaccine?
The latest electoral roll of Lok Shaba and Assembly elections will be used to identify senior citizens. For the rest of the population, elf-registration on CoWIN will be made available in later phases. It will include uploading a government photo identity or Aadhaar for registration and identification. A date, time and venue will be allocated for the subsequent inoculation. On-the-spot registration is not allowed.
The Vaccination Process:
Registered participants will assemble at the prescribed venue on that particular day. After the vaccine is administered, they will be kept under observation for 30 minutes to check for any adverse reactions. A five-member vaccination team will overlook the process. Two doses of the vaccine, 28 days apart need to be taken by an individual to complete the vaccination schedule. Protective level of antibodies is supposed to develop a fortnight after the second dose. The ministry of Health and Family Welfare announced that they are ready to rollout the vaccination drive in the next seven days.
Approval of the Dignitary:
The drug regulatory authority gave the green signal to the jabs developed by AstraZeneca with Oxford University and by local firm Bharat Biotech. Prime minister Narendra Modi called it a “decisive turning point”, because people can finally get rid of the lethal virus that wreaks havoc in all their lives both economically and physically. India plans to inoculate some 300 million people on a priority list this year. On Saturday, India held a national wide drill to prepare more than 90,000 health care workers to administer vaccines across the country.
Controversies:
The Drugs Controller General of India said both manufacturers had submitted data showing their vaccines were safe to use. However, oppositions and some doctors have criticized a lack of transparency in the approval process. Dr Swapneil Parikh, an infectious diseases researcher based in Mumbai, told the BBC that doctors were in a difficult position.
Conclusion:
Thus, with the help of the vaccines we can finally be at peace, this being a permanent solution to the atrocities of COVID-19 adds to the relief, that we are yearning to feel for more than a year.
-Devimanju Mohan.
