Human trials of Covaxin, the vaccine invented by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech pharma company, could begin in Jeevan Rekha Hospital in Belagavi by next week.
The Drug Controller General of India has issued licence to the company to conduct human trials. Jeevan Rekha was among the 12 hospitals and research centres in the country to hold the trials.
Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which has allowed the trials, had said that the trials would start by July 15 so that the vaccine could be available to the people by August 15.
The trials began at AIIMS Patna and PGIMS Rohtak on July 15 and July 17, respectively. It began in AIIMS Delhi on July 25.
Jeevan Rekha Hospital will conduct phase one and phase two of the trials as per ICMR protocol, hospital director Amit Bhate said. “We have gathered 200 volunteers aged between 18 and 55. Their throat swab samples have been collected and sent for COVID-19 tests. The test dose of the vaccine would be administered only to those who test negative,” he said.
Once the intravenous vaccine is administered, the volunteers will be allowed to go home. They will not be admitted to Jeevan Rekha hospital. Volunteers will have to report to the hospital every two days or other periods fixed as per ICMR norms.
He hoped the process would begin in a week.
Meanwhile, the news of the vaccine trial created a hankering for trial vaccine among some persons, whose relatives or acquaintances had tested positive. Social media platforms witnessed a clamour from those wanting to be part of the trial. Many persons wanted to get the contact details of the hospital as they wanted the test dose.
However, Dr. Bhate said that volunteers were selected strictly on the basis of ICMR norms. “COVID-19 patients cannot be volunteers and their relatives could carry the virus. We test the volunteers and give them the vaccine only if their test results are negative,” he said. According to him, the hospital did not accept payment from any volunteer.