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SII, Bharat Biotech make joint pledge
New Delhi: A day after a war of words appeared to break out between vaccine-makers Serum Institute of India (SII) and Bharat Biotech, both of which have received
New Delhi: A day after a war of words appeared to break out between vaccine-makers Serum Institute of India (SII) and Bharat Biotech, both of which have received emergency approvals to roll out jabs against the coronavirus, the two Indian companies on Tuesday appeared to bury the hatchet as they jointly pledged for a smooth roll-out of vaccines in the country and the world.
On Monday, Bharat Biotech chairman and managing director Krishna Ella hit out at comments suggesting that the firm’s coronavirus vaccine, Covaxin, was “safe like water”, and said its Phase 3 efficacy data, likely to be out by February or March, will silence critics. Though he did not take any names, Ella’s remarks came a day after SII CEO Adar Poonawalla said that only three vaccines had passed all scientific evaluations and others were “safe like water”.
In an unexpected joint statement on Wednesday, the two firms said: “Both companies respect the great work being carried out by each other and put behind us the miscommunication and misunderstanding caused during the past week. We are fully aware of the importance of vaccines for people and countries alike, we hereby communicate our joint pledge to provide global access for our Covid-19 vaccines.”
Bharat Biotech has been in the eye of a storm after Covaxin was granted “restricted use in emergency situation” approval, leading to several experts questioning the decision because of the shorter duration of human trials and relatively lower data published for the candidate, which is still in the process of its Phase 3 checks. The Oxford vaccine, called Covishield, got the Drug Control General of India (DCGI) nod based on the safety, immunogenicity and efficacy data generated on 23,745 participants from overseas studies, as well as interim data from Phase 2/3 trials on 1,600 people in India.
Hitting out at criticism at a press conference on Monday, Ella said it was “easy to target Indian scientists”.
“I had to tell this because some other company has branded my product as ‘safe like water’. Some local company in press yesterday said that safety is like water of other companies. Only three companies have done efficacy, and other vaccine is like water. I want to deny that.” He also appeared to question the results of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine that is being manufactured by SII.
A day later, however, the joint statement appeared to de-escalate the slugfest between executives of the two vaccine-makers clashed over the approval of their jabs. “Adar Poonawala and Krishna Ella, jointly on behalf of the two companies, today communicated their combined intent to develop manufacture and supply the Covid-19 vaccines for India and globally. They said the more important task in front of them is saving the lives and livelihoods of populations in India and the world,” the statement said.
“Now that two Covid-19 vaccines have been issued EUA (emergency use authorization) in India, the focus is on manufacturing, supply and distribution, such that populations that need it the most receive high quality, safe and efficacious vaccines. Both our Companies are fully engaged in this activity and consider it our duty to the nation and the world at large to ensure a smooth rollout of vaccines. Each of our Companies continue their Covid-19 vaccines development activities as planned,” it added.
The statement was posted on the Twitter accounts of the two companies and also shared by Poonawalla, who said: “This should clarify any miscommunication. We are all united in the fight against this pandemic.”
