Availability of vaccine against COVID-19 will improve after July

New Delhi, Apr 20: The vaccine supply in India is expected to improve by July, Niti Aayog member Vinod Paul said. He also said that the relaxation of norms will let the country fast track green lighting of foreign made vaccines that have been granted emergency use in other countries.

He said that the government is expecting that the production of both Covaxin and Covishield will be scaled up. We also expect Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson and Johnson to seek Indian licence as soon as possible, he also said.

He also said that the Russian made Sputnik-V vaccine is also likely to be available by May. He said that the first 100 beneficiaries of the vaccines will be assessed for a week for safety outcomes before they are rolled out as part of the larger immunisation programme in the country.

"Better the availability, the more age groups we can cover. The government is looking to first cover the 45-plus group and then, depending on availability, expand the drive to cover others, which has been the demand of many states," Dr Paul said.