Define inclusive vaccine access strategy now: Rahul Gandhi to govt

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday (Aug 14) demanded that the government clearly define an inclusive and equitable vaccine access policy to ensure its affordability and fair distribution.

He said India will soon be one of the COVID-19 vaccine producing countries and the government must spell out its strategy now.

“India will be one of the COVID-19 vaccine-producing nations. It needs a clearly-defined, inclusive and equitable vaccine access strategy ensuring availability, affordability and fair distribution. The Government of India (GOI) must do it now,” he said on Twitter.

India will be one of the COVID-19 vaccine-producing nations.

It needs a clearly-defined, inclusive & equitable vaccine access strategy ensuring availability, affordability & fair distribution.

GOI must do it now.

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 14, 2020

Human trials on various COVID vaccines are currently underway across the world, including in India. Drug firm Zydus Cadila on Aug 5 said the phase I clinical trial of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, ZyCoV-D, has been completed and it will commence phase II clinical trials from August 6. Similarly COVAXIN, another coronavirus vaccine candidate developed by Indian firm Bharat Biotech too has completed its phase 1 human clinical trial and the preliminary results of the trial suggests that India’s first indigenously developed vaccine against novel coronavirus, is safe.