India to get its first COVID-19 vaccine by the end of 2020: Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan

The Minister of Health and Family Welfare Dr. Harsh Vardhan on August 22, 2020, announced that India will get its first COVID-19 vaccine by the end of 2020.

While talking about the development, the union minister informed that the COVID-19 vaccine is likely to be introduced in the next 4-5 months as one of the three vaccine candidates has entered the 3rd phase of the pre-clinical human trial.

Dr. Harsh Vardhan informed about the vaccine during the inauguration of a 10-bedded make-shift hospital at NDRF base in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh on August 22.

कब तक आएगी #कोरोना की #vaccine ?

पत्रकारों के इस सवाल पर मैंने उम्मीद जताई कि अगर सब कुछ ठीक रहा तो भारत इस साल के आखिर तक #coronavaccine हासिल कर लेगा। @MoHFW_INDIA @CSIR_IND @NDRFHQ pic.twitter.com/zqAxftKUdt

— Dr Harsh Vardhan (@drharshvardhan) August 22, 2020

New 10-bedded make-shift hospital: Key Details

• The hospital was inaugurated by Dr. Harsh Vardhan in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh.

• The make-shift hospital has been set up by National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) in collaboration with CSIR constituent laboratory CSIR-CBRI (Central Building Research Institute), Roorkee.

• The hospital has been designed for the patients to provide a primary health facility with security, safety, and a comfortable living environment.

• The fully Air Conditioned pre-fabricated makeshift hospital is also equipped with various modern facilities such as ECG Machines, Paramonitors, and Defibrillators.

• The make-shift hospital has been planned to serve the purpose of the disaster stage including for the use in emergency situations and long pandemic.

Development of COVID-19 vaccine in India:

The confirmation on the development of the COVID-19 vaccine by the Union Health Minister and the head of the national task force on COVID-19 came after the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration met the five domestic manufacturers of vaccine to review the clinical trial stages of these vaccine candidates.

As per V.K. Paul, the head of the national task force on COVID-19, the COVID-19 vaccine candidate that entered the phase third has shown encouraging results in the initial phases of its trial.

He also informed that the other two vaccines are currently in phase 2 or 3 of their pre-clinical trials. However, they did not reveal the names of the vaccine candidates while sharing the status of their testing phase.

It can be assumed that the vaccine entering the third phase of the clinical trial is COVAXIN, by Bharat Biotech and jointly developed by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).