Bharat Biotech dispatches first shipments of World's first intranasal COVID vaccine iNCOVACC across India

"The first shipments of #iNCOVACC are being dispatched to various locations across #India. A moment of pride and accomplishment for team @BharatBiotech," Bharat Biotech said in a tweet.

On Sunday Dr Krishna Ella, Executive Chairman, Bharat Biotech said that Bharat Biotech Pvt Ltd has started dispatching World's first Intranasal heterologous booster dose to hospitals. "We have just dispatched nasal vaccines two days ago to the hospitals," he said.

Dr Ella informed about the dispatch of vaccines during the UW-Madison Global Health Institute, and Ella Foundation agreement to establish the first-ever 'UW-Madison One Health Center' in India to advance vaccines, therapeutics, and global health education.

iNCOVACC is the world's first Intranasal vaccine for COVID to receive approval for the primary 2-dose schedule, and as a heterologous booster dose, administered as nasal drops.

It is a Covid19 vaccine that does not require syringes, needles, alcohol wipes, bandages, etc, saving costs related to procurement, distribution, storage, and biomedical waste disposal, which is routinely required for injectable vaccines.

iNCOVACC is priced at Rs 325 per dosage for large-volume procurement by State Governments and the Government of India.

Bharat Biotech International Limited (BBIL), a global leader in vaccine innovation and developer of vaccines for infectious diseases, today dedicated iNCOVACC (BBV154) to the nation, the world's first COVID intranasal vaccine for Primary series and Heterologous booster. It was launched by Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya in the presence of Jitendra Singh, Minister for Science and Technology, on the occasion of Republic Day.

iNCOVACC is a recombinant replication-deficient adenovirus vectored vaccine with a pre-fusion stabilized spike protein. This vaccine candidate was evaluated in phase I, II, and III clinical trials with successful results.

The intranasal vaccine is stable at 2-8 degrees Celsius for easy storage and distribution and has been designed for efficient distribution and easy pain-free administration.

Earlier in January, Dr Krishna Ella, Executive Chairman, said, "With the rollout of iNCOVACC today, we have achieved our goal of establishing a novel vaccine delivery platform for intranasal delivery. It proves that India can innovate for itself and for the world. We and the country are well prepared for future COVID-19 variants and future infectious diseases."

He added that Bharat Biotech is a leading global developer and manufacturer of vaccines with more than 7 billion doses manufactured to date.