Representative image Photograph:( Reuters )
The pharmaceutical company Pfizer recently announced that its vaccine is 90% effective. There are several players involved in the race, including India and China
The pharmaceutical company Pfizer recently announced that its vaccine is 90% effective. There are several players involved in the race, including India and China. In India, more than 10 candidates are in the final phase of trials. Researchers, governments and the private sector are working hard to find a vaccine. Right now, 52 vaccines are being tested on humans, with 11 in the final stage of trials. At least 87 other candidates - are in the preclinical trial stage, and are being tested on animals.
The Oxford vaccine has a clear lead over most candidates, and is in the final stage of trials. Three countries and the European Union, are now mulling its regulatory approval.
The trial so far hasn't thrown up any major red flags, and the vaccine has been found safe to administer on both the young and the elderly.
China
On the other hand is China, whose Coronavac vaccine’s trials have been suspended in Brazil for triggering a “severe” reaction. This vaccine is made by Sinovac - the state owned vaccine maker of China.
They have injected 90 per cent of their employees and their families with Coronavac. Without the global stamp of approval, Sinovac was running trials in Brazil.
In Sao Paulo, the company had signed a deal to build a facility to produce 100 million doses of the Coronavac despite opposition from the Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. Earlier this month, the people of Sao Paulo protested against Chinese vaccines. No details of the Chinese vaccine have been made public so far. The details of the severe incident also remain unknown.
Russia
Moscow now claims that the Sputnik V vaccine is more than 90 per cent effective, just like the vaccine from Pfizer. But, Russia's assessment is not based on trial data.
Also read: Brazil halts trials of Chinese Covid-19 vaccine
Sputnik V is being tested on 40 thousand people. But claims of efficacy are based on how the people have responded to vaccine doses.
India
The Indian government has backed Covaxin, which could be launched by February. So far, the trials show that Covaxin is effective. Covaxin could be one of the many vaccines to get an early approval if it works. But the supplies may not be enough for everyone to get a shot. According to one estimate, the world will need 15 billion doses to inoculate everyone.