Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine is set to make inroads into India soon, adding to the country's arsenal to fight the pandemic.

The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) on Tuesday, 29 June, granted permission to pharmaceutical firm Cipla to import Moderna vaccines for restricted emergency use in the country.

Earlier, the US Pharmaceutical company had sought permission for emergency use in India.

Oxford-AstraZeneca's Covishield, Bharat Biotech's Covaxin and Russia's Sputnik V are already in use in India. Moderna will be the fourth COVID-19 vaccine which will be administered.

Moderna is an mRNA vaccine, the same technology as that of the Pfizer vaccine.

The vaccine contains genetic instructions for our cells to make the coronavirus' spike protein. Our body creates the antibodies that recognise and attack the protein if they come in contact with the virus.

You will need two shots of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to get the most protection.

The second shot of the vaccine must be administered four weeks or 28 days after the first shot.

The vaccine has been shown to be safe and effective for adults over the age of 18.

Two doses of the vaccine are needed to be fully effective.

Phase 3 clinical trials of the vaccine, with over 30,000 participants, showed it was found to be 94.1 percent effective at preventing symptomatic infection.

A small CDC study that enrolled 3,950 healthcare professionals, first responders, and other essential and frontline workers showed the vaccine to be 90 percent effective upon full immunisation (at least 14 days after the second dose) under real-world conditions.

The most common side effects of were injection site pain, fatigue, headache , muscle pain, joint pain, and chills that typically lasted for up to three days.

The vaccine retained its efficacy against emerging variants of concern, including the Alpha and Beta variants, according to a statement by the company.

Moderna is also likey to provide strong, although slightly lower protection against the Delta variant after two doses, if Pfizer, which is also an mRNA vaccine, is used as a marker. However, more data is needed to determine the impact of the Delta variant on the vaccine.

The vaccine is expected to remain stable at standard refrigerator temperatures (2 degree Celsius to 8 degree Celsius) for 30 days, up from previous estimate of 7 days.

For shipping and longer-term storage, Moderna expects that vaccine will be maintained at -20 degree Celsius, equal to most home or medical freezer temperatures, for up to 6 months.

Once the vaccine is removed from the refrigerator for administration, it can be kept at room temperature conditions for up to 12 hours.