WHO gives nod to Bharat Biotech's Covaxin for emergency use listing

New Delhi, Nov 3: The World Health Organisation on Wednesday accepted Bharat Biotech's Covaxin for its emergence use listing for 18 years and above.

As per news agency PTI, Technical Advisory Group of WHO recommended Emergency Use Listing status for Bharat Biotech's Covaxin after seeking additional clarifications from the Hyderabad-based firm, last week.

The WHO is in the process of evaluating Covaxin's clinical trial data for use of EUL. The TAG on October 26 had sought "additional clarifications" from the company for Covaxin to conduct a final "risk-benefit assessment" for Emergency Use Listing of the vaccine.

"The Technical Advisory Group of WHO has recommended Emergency Use Listing status for Covaxin," a source told PTI.

Covaxin is India's first indigenous COVID-19 vaccine which is developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research.

The Technical Advisory Group for Emergency Use Listing (TAG-EUL) is an independent advisory group which recommends the WHO on whether or not a Covid 19 vaccine can be listed for emergency use under the EUL procedure.

Covaxin has demonstrated 77.8 per cent effectiveness against symptomatic COVID-19 and 65.2 per cent protection against the new Delta variant. In June, the company said it concluded the final analysis of Covaxin efficacy from Phase 3 trials.

Bharat Biotech's Covaxin and AstraZeneca and Oxford University's Covishield are the two widely used vaccines in India. With inputs from PTI