Amidst the second wave of Covid 19 and the apprehensions of the third wave, the Drugs Controller General of India has granted permission to import Moderna Covid 19. However, it is restricted to emergency use in India.
Mumbai Based Pharmaceuticals Receives Green Signal For Moderna
As per the latest reports, Mumbai-based pharmaceuticals company, Cipla has received permission from the DCGI to import Moderna Covid 19 vaccine. Earlier, Moderna had sought the regulatory body’s permission for emergency us in India. And Cipla had applied for the import and marketing rights of the vaccine which is manufactured in the United States of America.
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Back in May this year, Cipla had already indicated an interest in procuring 5 crore Moderna doses from next year and had urged the confirmation from the Union government for stable regulatory requirements and policies. They further requested the government for indemnification and exemptions from prices, bridging trials and the basic customs duty on the vaccine import.
The permission has been granted under the provisions of the New Drugs and Clinical Trial Rules, 2019 and under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
Cipla May Be Close To Importing 50 Million Doses
Moderna’ Covid 19 vaccine was developed by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) in the US. It is composed of nucleoside-modified mRNA (modRNA) and encodes a SARS-CoV-2 spike protein encapsulated in lipid nanoparticles, according to the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
Reports suggests that Cipla was close to committing over $1 billion as advance to the Moderna for the import of 50 million doses. India is already administering Oxford’s Covishield, Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin and Russia’s Sputnik V in its fight against the deadly disease outbreak.
