The National Expert Group on vaccine administration will meet on Wednesday to decide on logistics, procurement and administration of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccine, as and when it is ready. Dr VK Paul, member (health), NITI Aayog, heads the panel.
Among the 24 vaccine candidates currently under various stages of clinical trials, three are at advances stages of phase three trials in the US, UK and China. (AFP)
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“The terms of reference of this expert committee are to streamline suitable vaccine selection, how procurement of vaccine will be done, how the vaccine would be delivered and prioritising groups to whom vaccine has to be administered,” said Rajesh Bhushan, Union health secretary, on Tuesday.
“The committee will also consider other issues related to logistics of the vaccine like cold chain, inventory, how to arrange resources to procure vaccine and how to address the equity issues linked to vaccination,” he said.
The committee is likely to engage with all stakeholders, including state governments and vaccine manufacturers, on the issue in Wednesday’s meeting.
Among the 24 vaccine candidates currently under various stages of clinical trials, three are at advances stages of phase three trials in the US, UK and China.
Rhythma Kaul is the national health editor of the Hindustan Times. She has been reporting on public health, medicine, and medical research, with a particular focus on how government decisions and health system reforms shape people’s lives. Rhythma has over 25 years of journalistic experience. She joined Hindustan Times in 2008, and has since covered everything from pandemics and infectious diseases to cutting‑edge medical research and climate‑related health challenges. Her stories routinely track the work of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, department of pharmaceuticals, and key national health programmes, making complex medical science and policy accessible to a wide audience. One of her prominent news breaks has been the 2012 Baby Falak case: A two-year-old brutally battered baby girl was admitted to AIIMS-Delhi with severe head injuries, multiple fractures, human bite marks, and burns. The police investigation revealed this to be a case of multi-state human-trafficking racket. She was profiled by The Wall Street Journal for breaking this story. Rhythma holds a Master’s degree from Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi. Prior to Hindustan Times, she worked with the India Today Group. Rhythma can be contacted at rhythma.kaul@hindustantimes.com. Her X handle is @RamblingBrook.
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