NEW DELHI: The centre on Friday approved the nasal vaccine as a booster dose amidst the fourth wave scare prompted by the striking surge in China, Brazil, and the USA. The two-drop India-made nasal vaccine will be available first in private hospitals. Citizens can book a slot for themselves at COWIN from today evening, officials said.
It added that those citizens who have taken Covishield and Covaxin are eligible for the nasal vaccine as a heterologous booster dose. The vaccine BBV154 is to be included in the vaccination program as a booster dose for people above 18 years of age.
The nasal vaccine by Hyderabad-based vaccine maker Bharat Biotech earlier received the approval of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) in September. Subsequently in November, it was granted the emergency nod by of the Drugs Controller General of India.
It is worth noting that iNCOVACC was recommended by India’s technical expert committee on immunization, Mandaviya informed Parliament on Thursday.
Meanwhile, India on Friday added 163 fresh infections while the active cases declined to 3,380, according to the Union Health Ministry. This took the active tally to 4.46 crore. With nine fatalities the death toll rose to 5,30,690.
The active cases comprise 0.01 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has increased to 98.80 per cent.