New Delhi: India plans to use the expansive network of its 42-year-old universal immunisation programme to manage the logistics of administering COVID-19 vaccines next year.
Officials involved in the planning process said that on conditions of anonymity the existing infrastructure and human resources will be sufficient for vaccination.
The first 30 million Indians, primarily health care workers and first responders will be vaccinated.
Out of the 2.39 lakh-strong force of vaccinators of the existing immunisation programme, at least 1.5 lakh workers will be used for administering COVID-19 vaccines to the first two priority groups tentatively from January to March 2021.
The universal immunisation programme comes under the health ministry, and covers 25 million children every year for vaccination, to protect them from diseases like polio, measles and tuberculosis.
The Union Health Ministry has written to all states and Union Territories to identify people who can be utilised for the mass COVID-19 vaccination drive.
"As you are aware, the Government of India has initiated preparations for the introduction of COVID-19 vaccine, upon its availability. As part of the preparations, one of the activities is the creation of a database of Health Care Workers (HCW) who will be prioritised for COVID-19 vaccine… It is reiterated that the potential vaccinators amongst the HCWs need to be identified for support during the COVID-19 vaccination drive," said the letter sent on November 23 by Vandana Gurnani, Health Ministry, Additional secretary.
The first vaccine is supposed to be available in India by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford and manufactured by Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII).
While the late-stage trials are on in India, interim data from Phase III trials elsewhere hs already shown that the vaccine is effective (62% on one dosage regimen and 90% on another).
SII's Adar Poonawala said on Sunday that his company would apply for emergency regulatory approval for the vaccine.
While three other vaccines (developed by Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech, and Russia's Gamelaya Institute) have also shown efficacy in Phase III trials.