NEW DELHI, May 27: The central government on Thursday announced that COVID-19 vaccine trials on children in the country would begin soon.
Member (Health) in NITI Aayog and the chair of National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19 (NEGVAC), Dr VK Paul, made the announcement on behalf of the government while clearing several myths on India’s COVID-19 vaccination programme doing the rounds.
Clarifying one such myth that “Centre is not taking any step to vaccinate children”, Paul said: “As of now, no country in the world is giving vaccines to children. Also, WHO has no recommendation on vaccinating children.”
Paul, however, said that there have been studies about safety of vaccines in children, which have been encouraging. “Trials in children in India are also going to begin soon. However, vaccinating children should not be decided on the basis of panic in WhatsApp groups and because some politicians want to play politics,” Paul said.
Paul further said that the decision in this regard is taken by scientists after adequate data is available based on trials.
He also made it clear that the Centre is allotting enough vaccines to the states in a transparent manner as per agreed guidelines and they are also being informed in advance of the vaccine availability.
Paul also announced that vaccine availability is going to increase in near future and much more supply would be possible.
No adverse effects of different doses
The Centre on Thursday said that any significant adverse effect is unlikely if the second dose of a different COVID-19 vaccine is administered, but reaching a firm opinion on this will need more scrutiny and understanding.
It, however, clarified that both doses administered to an individual should be of the same vaccine as per the existing protocol.
“Any significant adverse effect is unlikely if the second dose of a different COVID-19 vaccine is given. In fact, there is a narrative that is going on that taking doses of two different vaccines can lead to stronger immunity… but for a firm opinion, more scrutiny and understanding will be required,” Paul said. (Agencies)
