India says it hopes to resume COVID-19 vaccine exports

India, the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines, wants to resume exports of coronavirus jabs but cannot do so until its domestic needs are met, the top of the country’s COVID-19 task force said on Friday (Jun 18).

“Once our immediate need of vaccinating a substantial proportion of Indian persons is achieved and vaccine stockpiles are visible from multiple sources, we'd then like to play the role of serving others and providing vaccines to them,” Dr Vinod K Paul said in an interview with The Associated Press.

Paul defended the Indian government’s move to restrict vaccine exports in April since it battled a ferocious surge in infections.

He noted that India had given away a “substantial” amount of vaccines in the beginning of the year since it launched its own immunisation drive. “In order that should be respected and should be recognized, as few nations did that,” he said.

From January, India commenced exporting vaccines to a lot more than 90 countries. However the exports stopped when infections soared in India, leaving many developing countries without adequate supplies and affecting thousands of people.

As critics accused India of mismanaging its sluggish vaccination efforts in the home, countries such as for example Nepal and Bangladesh started out looking toward China to fill their vaccine shortfalls.

The Serum Institute of India, the world’s greatest vaccine maker, also abandoned its role as the primary supplier to COVAX, the UN-backed project to provide vaccines to poor parts of the world. Last month, it said it might not exactly be able to start delivering doses before end of the year, dealing a significant blow to global efforts to immunise persons against the coronavirus.

Paul said a resumption of exports continues to be “very much on the radar”. However when asked when the restrictions will be lifted, he answered, “It isn't fair to place any date at this stage in time."

Confirmed coronavirus cases in India have surpassed 29 million, while deaths have surged beyond 380,000. Experts believe both numbers are vast undercounts.

Media reports have cast doubts on the government’s data collection, with crematoriums and statewide tallies of deaths showing different figures. Paul said the government has no reason to cover up deaths or cases.

New cases are finally tapering off after exceeding 400,000 a day in May, a worldwide record. But authorities are gearing up for another possible wave of infection and so are concentrating on yanking vaccination rates up.

Currently, significantly less than 5 per cent of India’s persons are fully immunised, with authorities cautioning that vaccination rates must go up significantly to protect a big chunk of the population by the end of the year.

The hope is that India will achieve an instant increase in inoculations in the coming months. Last month, Paul told reporters that about 2 billion doses could possibly be available by December under a roadmap that is determined by India’s two main suppliers - Serum Institute and Bharat Biotech - ramping up production and five other potential vaccines being offered in the coming months.

But experts and critics pointed out that both Serum Institute and Bharat Biotech have struggled to improve manufacturing, and that the other potential vaccines remain undergoing trials with no clear date for if they will be available, raising questions over whether Paul’s estimate was realistic.

Paul acknowledged Friday that it had been an “optimistic” projection. But he said it had been predicated on estimates by the manufacturers themselves and that the figure showed “there may be the potential".

“We are also mindful of the fact that there are steps to be met,” he said, conceding that vaccine makers may face regulatory hurdles or trouble obtaining recycleables.

He said India can get to see at least 740 million doses between August and December. But this consists of 300 million of a vaccine that's still in late testing rather than yet available. More orders will be put later on, he added.

While much of India’s vast rural hinterlands were largely spared from COVID-19 this past year, which has not been the case through the recent surge. Usage of healthcare is a lot more limited in the countryside, raising fears that the virus could rip through small towns and villages unabated.

In the years ahead, the focus will need to shift to these small towns and villages, Paul said.

“The spread of our preparedness will be much more into the hinterlands, in to the rural areas,” he said.