Amid the rising Omicron fear in India and the world, the Serum Institute of India (SII) has now asked approval from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for Covishield booster shots. Official sources said that SII cited the adequate stock of the vaccine in the country and the rising demand for the booster shot amid the Omicron scare, in its application. In an application to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), Prakash Kumar Singh, the Director, Government, and Regulatory Affairs at Serum Institute of India (SII) cited that the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has already approved the booster dose of AstraZeneca ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine. Recently, Kerala, Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Chhattisgarh have urged the Centre to decide on allowing booster doses of COVID-19 vaccine diseased amid concerns raised by 'Omicron', the new variant of SARS-CoV-2. The Delhi High Court on November 25 directed the Centre to clarify its stand on administering booster doses to those who are fully vaccinated against coronavirus, saying it does not want a second-wave-like situation on account of being conservative.

Source: dna December 02, 2021 03:10 UTC