E-Paper
Rs 7 lifesaver after 1,665 deaths cleared
A mere Rs 7 could have saved the 1,665 people, who died of JE last year and prevented most of the 6,594 cases of the disease.
A mere Rs 7 could have saved the 1,665 people, mostly children, who died of Japanese encephalitis last year and prevented most of the 6,594 cases of the disease.
For Rs 18.61 crore, the government has finally cleared the procurement of the single-shot SA 14-14-2 vaccine from China to vaccinate 12.2 million children aged 1-15 years in 11 districts across UP, Bihar, Assam, West Bengal and Karnataka in April. "Including operational cost, the government needs Rs 12 to protect a child against a disease that had a death rate of 25 per cent," says Shobhan Sarkar, national technical advisor on vaccines to the health ministry. Some 13.5 million doses of the SA 14-14-2 live accentuated vac cine will be procured.
According to WHO, vaccination is the single-most important measure to control JE. Currently, there are three types of JE vaccines — the mouse brain-derived inactivated vaccine, the cell culture-derived inactivated vaccine and the cell culture-derived live attenuated vaccine.
The Central Research Institute in Kasauli makes the mouse brain-derived vaccines but can't keep up with the demand due to shortage of the key ingredient — brain of suckling mice. Apart from a manufacturing capacity of 5 lakh, what makes this Indian vaccine impractical is the fact that it needs two booster shots and is priced at Rs 150.
Experts say the Chinese vaccine will work here as the strain of the JE virus prevalent in China is similar to the one in India.
A study published in The Lancet in October clearly showed that a single shot of SA 14-14-2 given to children in Nepal provided 98.5 per cent protection for 12-15 months after vaccination against the Indian JE strain. No booster shots were needed.
"The WHO’s Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety has clearly acknowledged the safety and efficacy of SA 14-14-2. It is a better alternative to the mouse brain-derived vaccine because it offers higher protection over a longer time, has fewer side-effects, needs no booster shots and is far cheaper," says a WHO official.
Some 100 vials of the Chinese vaccine will undergo safety trials at CRI. China has assured India it can provide the 13.5 million doses needed by March-end. The vaccination process is likely to take up to 10 days.
