Medics collect a swab sample of a young boy for the test at Sadar, one of the hotspots for COVID-19 during a nationwide lockdown in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, in Lucknow, Monday, April 13, 2020
India will 'definitely' be involved in the trials of coronavirus vaccine and its manufacturing as well as scaling, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Tuesday. The global health body was responding to a query from India TV Digital on the progress in the development of a vaccine for coronavirus.
"India was involved in the R and I meeting (Research and Innovation) – represented by DBT (Department of Biotechnology) and ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research). India has expressed interest in joining Solidarity 1 and will definitely be involved in vaccine trials as well as manufacturing and scaling," WHO's spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic said in an emailed response.
"Indian scientists are also working on vaccine candidates, which need further development," added Jasarevic.
"Solidarity” is an international clinical trial to help find an effective treatment for coronavirus, as per WHO. As of April 8, over 90 countries were involved in finding "therapeutics" for the virus as soon as possible.
As of April 8, over 90 countries were working together to find an effective cure for the contagious virus, known to particularly attack patients with respiratory ailments.
The Geneva-based organisation said in a press release earlier in the day that 130 individuals from various countries were working towards the development of vaccines against coronavirus, an effort under the banner of the World Health Organisation.
"As part of WHO’s response to the outbreak, a Research and Development (R&D) blueprint has been activated to accelerate the development of diagnostics, vaccines and therapeutics for this novel coronavirus," the release stated.
Jasarevic said that the 130 candidates didn't include a single Indian as they weren't directly selected by the WHO. "The 130 individuals who signed were not selected by WHO – it was a spontaneous effort. Many of them are involved in the expert groups that work with the blueprint, but there are others who have signed on," he said.
As of April 13, over 17 lakh coronavirus infections were recorded across the world, including close to 1.12 lakh deaths.
According to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India has so far witnessed 9,152 cases of coronavirus, which include 308 deaths.
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