The World Health Organisation on Saturday confirmed suspension of supply of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin through UN procurement agencies to allow the company to address “GMP (good manufacturing practices) deficiencies”. The WHO after conducting a post-EUL (emergency use listing) inspection between March 14 and 22 identified the deficiencies and suggested process and facility upgrade.
This, however, does not impact the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine. “The risk assessment to date does not indicate change in the risk-benefit ratio. The data, available to WHO, indicate the vaccine is effective and no safety concern exists,” said WHO in a release.
The WHO said that the company has decided to suspend its production for export as a precautionary measure. “The company is developing a corrective and preventive action plan,” it said.
The WHO has asked countries receiving Covaxin to take appropriate measures and has provided a list of other approved vaccines to continue their vaccination drive. This comes after the company announced scaling down its supply within the country for the maintenance and upgrade of its manufacturing facility.
So far, over 30.78 crore doses of Covaxin have been administered, according to data from the government’s CoWIN portal. The company was supplying over 5 to 6 crore doses every month.
Source: india Express
