Pharmaceutical company Pfizer is in the final stages to get an approval for the use of its Covid-19 vaccine in India, said the firm’s Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla, reported ANI on Tuesday.
“I hope very soon we will finalise an agreement with the government,” he added.
The company is already in talks with the Centre to roll out five crore doses between July and October this year.
On June 1, the government had waived the requirement to conduct post-launch bridging trials for foreign-made coronavirus vaccines in a move that is expected to bolster the availability of the shots. The Drugs Controller General of India has also done away with the mandatory testing of every batch of such vaccines at the Central Drugs Laboratory in Kasauli.
On June 4, All India Institute of Medical Sciences chief Dr Randeep Guleria had said that Pfizer’s demand for indemnity “also seems to be resolved”. Reports said this was a key condition of pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Moderna for supplying doses to India.
Pfizer has obtained indemnity in several countries where its vaccine is already in use, including the United States. Indemnity provides protection to vaccine makers against legal proceedings and costs of compensation for severe side effects among those who receive the shots.
In May, Dr VK Paul, head of India’s Covid-19 Task Force, had said that the government was examining Pfizer’s request. He added that decisions will be taken “in the larger interest of people and on merits”.
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