Decrease gap between two doses of Covishield to 8-16 weeks, suggests panel

New Delhi: The National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) has recommended reducing the gap between the first and second dose of COVID vaccine Covishield to 8 to 16 weeks in view of the ongoing Omicron pandemic, said a source on Sunday.

Presently, the second dose of Covishield is being administered 12-16 weeks after the first dose under the national vaccination drive. India's apex body on immunization now recommends this be curbed to ramp up the administration of the second dose of Covishield to the remaining population amid rising cases in European nations and some other countries.

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The government had on May 13, 2021, extended the gap between the first and second doses of the Covishield vaccine from 6-8 weeks to 12-16 weeks, based on the recommendations by NTAGI that provide guidance to the Union Health Ministry on the immunization.

However, India continues on the downward trend of new Covid cases. A total of 1,761 fresh COVID cases was recorded nationwide on Sunday which is the lowest in around 688 days. Following a continuous downward trend, India's active caseload has also declined to 26,240, constituting 0.06 percent of total positive cases. 

Medical Dialogues team had recently published that the COVID-19 vaccine administered for children aged between 12 and 14 years, Corbevax, was being sold to the government at Rs 145 per dose, said Biological E, which is the Hyderabad based manufacturer of the vaccine, whereas it will cost Rs 800 in the private market. As per a media report in the Economic Times, the vaccine would cost around Rs 800 without taxes in the private market, said Mahima Datla, managing director of Biological E at a press conference. However, it would cost around Rs 990 after GST and administering charges. 

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