Indian Scientists Warn Of Ambitious Targets For COVID-19 Vaccine By August

Illustration (Unsplash / CDC)

JAKARTA - The statement by the Indian Medical Research Council (ICMR) targeting the corona virus vaccine in India to be completed on August 15 has drawn controversy. Scientists call this target unrealistic. In fact, being too forced can be dangerous.

Quoting the BBC, the controversy broke out when the head of ICMR Balram Bhargava, wrote a letter to 12 institutions selected to conduct human trials of a vaccine called Covaxin. In the letter, he appealed to the trial to be accelerated.

Bhargava said, on August 15 the vaccine should be launched. The letter even had a threatening tone. Those who do not comply will be taken seriously.

In contrast, the Ministry of Science and Technology said that vaccine development in India, including Covaxin, may not be completed before 2021. Confusion in the authorities' statements has confused vaccine development scientists.

Reaping protests

The authority's ambitious target drew a lot of criticism. Many say the deadline for completing the vaccine by August 15 will undermine India's credibility.

One of the criticisms came from the President of the Indian Academy of Sciences Partha P Majumder. He warned that the rush to manufacture a vaccine could jeopardize the rigorous standard process of science.

Majumder said he had never found a reference that the probation period could be carried out for one month, as announced by the ICMR. "It could put a bad mark on the biomedical research and pharmaceutical industries," Majumder was quoted as saying by the BBC.

After drawing protests, ICMR clarified the letter. They said that the target was not an actual deadline.

They explain this is an attempt to cut red tape, not to compromise on safety trials. One ICMR official whose talk was quoted by the local Indian media, Mint, explained that there was a misperception in the initial communication.

As is well known, the manufacture of new vaccines takes months or even years. But researchers around the world are racing to make a vaccine.

Most experts think a vaccine may not be available until mid-2021. About 12-18 months after the new coronavirus, known as Sars-CoV-2, first appeared.