UPSC Articles
Covaxin cleared for emergency use in 2-18 age group
Part of: Prelims and GS II – Health
Context Bharat Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin (BBV152) has been recommended for emergency use authorisation (EUA) for 2-18-year-olds by the Subject Expert Committee (SEC) of the Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation (CDSCO).
- Once approved, it will emerge as the first COVID-19 vaccine globally to be used for vaccinating children as young as 2 years.
What is the Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation (CDSCO)?
- The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO)under the Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, is the National Regulatory Authority (NRA) of India.
- Under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, CDSCO is responsible for approval of Drugs, Conduct of Clinical Trials, laying down the standards for Drugs,
- Headquarters: New Delhi
About Covaxin
- Covaxin is India’s first indigenous, whole-virion, inactivated vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Medical Research Council (ICMR) and the National Institute of Virology (NIV).
- It has been formulated with ‘Algel-IMDG’, which contains chemically absorbed TLR7/8 as an adjuvant onto aluminium hydroxide gel to generate the requisite type of immune responses without damaging the body.
