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By Aftab Ahmed and Nigam Prusty
NEW DELHI, Jan 3 (Reuters) - The head of India's drugs
regulator said on Sunday he had given final approval for the
emergency-use of two coronavirus vaccines, one developed by
AstraZeneca and Oxford University and the other by local
company Bharat Biotech.
The overall efficacy of the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine was
70.42%, while Bharat Biotech's COVAXIN was "safe and provides a
robust immune response", Drugs Controller General of India V.G.
Somani said.
The British-developed AstraZeneca/Oxford shot is being made
locally by the Serum Institute of India, while Bharat Biotech
has teamed up with the government-run Indian Council of Medical
Research.
"Vaccines of M/s Serum and M/s Bharat Biotech are being
approved for restricted use in emergency situations," Somani
read out from a written statement at a press conference. Somani
did not take questions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the approvals.
"It would make every Indian proud that the two vaccines that
have been given emergency use approval are made in India!" he
said on Twitter, calling it a sign of a "self-reliant" country.
(Reporting by Aftab Ahmed and Nigam Prusty: Editing by Neil
Fullick)
