GOI Needs Vaccine Distribution Strategy For Pfizer: Rahul Gandhi

“The logistics for making promising Pfizer vaccine available to every Indian need to be worked out,” Gandhi tweeted.

Congress Leader Rahul Gandhi.

(Photo Courtesy: INCIndia/Twitter)

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addressed the COVID-19 pandemic on Wednesday, 11 November when he went on Twitter to ask key questions to the Modi government about the logistics of the vaccine. He mentioned that the central government needed to strategise a distribution plan to ensure the promising Pfizer vaccine is available to every Indian citizen. Gandhi has previously criticised the BJP government on the testing and healthcare measures in controlling the pandemic.

Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan told The Hindustan Times that the Indian expert group on coronavirus vaccine administration was in dialogue with all vaccine manufacturers - including domestic and foreign, including Pfizer.

“Pfizer vaccine has to be kept at -70C which is a challenge for developing countries like India where we’ll have difficulties in maintaining a cold chain, especially on rural missions. Overall encouraging news in vaccine research for those in Phase III trials”, says Randeep Guleria, Director, Delhi AIIMS.

India's COVID-19 cases crossed the 86 lakh mark on Wednesday, while the number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 80.13 lakh, pushing the national recovery rate to 92.79 percent, according to the Union Health Ministry's data.

About the Pfizer Vaccine

The COVID-19 vaccine being developed by Pfizer Inc, a US-based pharmaceutical company, and the German firm BioNTech SE has reportedly prevented more than 90 percent of infections in a study with tens of thousands of volunteers. This, according to Bloomberg, is being deemed as the most encouraging scientific advancement so far in the battle against the coronavirus.

Further, AFP reported that protection in patients was achieved seven days after the second of two doses, and 28 days after the first, according to preliminary findings.

However, the vaccine would not be available for public use without the data of safety being released, and it may only be announced to the public in the later days of November, reported The Hindustan Times.

(With inputs from Hindustan Times and AFP)