A top government expert said on Friday that India’s vaccination expert group is reviewing the decision to postpone the second doses of Covishield because new scientific evidence from other countries suggests that a single dose may not be enough to protect against the Delta variant of the coronavirus that has swept the country.
Data from the UK revealed last month that vaccine efficacy rates fell to under 35% in people who had only received their first dose when exposed to the variant, prompting many experts to call on the government to reverse its decision to require a 12-week gap between doses. Dr. K Srinath Reddy, president of the Public Health Foundation of India, was the most recent to speak.
“His suggestion has been made based on data in the context of mutations in the virus; he has quoted two-three quality studies and suggested the interval should be reduced again to 8 weeks as was practised earlier. Let it be examined by our NTAGI (National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation in India). It is a process. Even United Kingdom must have changed it after reviewing the data by scientific committees and experts,” said Dr VK Paul, member, Niti Aayog.
“Earlier they (UK officials) were giving it at 12 weeks and we were giving the second dose at a shorter interval because our experts felt it wasn’t safe to increase the interval. The decisions are made based on scientific evidences,” said Paul.
Under the brand name Covishield, the Serum Institute of India (SII) manufactures the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 AZD1222 vaccine in India. The vaccine was tested using a four-week prime-boost regimen, but real-world data from the United Kingdom showed that delaying the second dose by eight to twelve weeks resulted in better protection.
“We will assign the responsibility to our scientific forum created in the country for the purpose. I am sure they are already addressing the issue, and will examine it keeping in mind the Indian context; the Indian disease pattern and the presence of variants circulating here. They need to take a comprehensive view and they will. We will abide by the decision made by the experts in this regard. Having said that, there is no need to panic, and switch rules overnight; these decisions must be taken carefully,” Paul added.
The centre decided earlier this week to shorten the period for a certain category of people who need to travel abroad for studies or employment opportunities, as well as those who are part of the Indian Olympic team in Tokyo.
“In case of Covishield, we decreased the length of the period based on existing evidence for those who have taken their first dose and need to travel for specified reasons as the modifications will help them complete their vaccine dosage,” said Lav Agarwal, joint secretary, Union health ministry.
According to Paul, the vaccination process in the country is picking up speed, and it is expected to improve even more in the coming weeks as vaccine supplies increase.
“It is obvious that as compared to the previous month, this month there were more vaccine doses available for use, and it will increase further. The process will further streamline under the Centre-state collaboration, especially vaccine procurement and distribution. Our request to people is make effort and take both the doses on time, particularly for health care and front line workers, and beneficiaries above 45 years of age.
