While the state administration is not opposed to the notion of a ‘booster dosage’ of vaccinations against Covid-19, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar stated on Friday that this can only be considered when the whole eligible population has been properly vaccinated.
The National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (NTAGI) and the National expert group on vaccine administration for Covid (NEGVAC) have issued no particular recommendations about a Covid-19 vaccination booster dosage.
Following the weekly Covid review meeting in Pune, Ajit Pawar reaffirmed that individuals who are due for their second dosage of the vaccine will be given priority in the Pune district.
Cyrus Poonawalla, the founder of the Serum Institute of India (SII), argued for a booster dosage six months after the second injection last week.
‘At the Covid review meet, some pressed for a booster dose, but before we move forward, eligible people in Pune and also in the state should get fully vaccinated. Then we can think of a booster dose. Many still haven’t received the first dose. The state government and I, personally, agree that a booster dose should be given,’ Ajit Pawar said.
On July 27, Dr. Bharati Pawar, minister of state for health and family welfare, said in response to a question in the Rajya Sabha that there are ‘some media reports of some countries considering booster doses of Covid-19 vaccine. The NTAGI and NEGVAC are deliberating and considering scientific evidence related to the dosing schedule of Covid-19 vaccines. So far, no specific recommendation regarding a Covid-19 vaccine booster dose has been made by NTAGI or NEGVAC.’
Dr. Priya Abraham, head of the National Institute of Virology (NIV), had stated in an interview with India Science, a channel of the Department of Science and Technology, that a booster dosage will be suggested in India in the future.
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‘Studies on booster doses have been going on overseas and at least seven different vaccines have been tried for a booster dose. Now, the WHO has put a stop to it till more countries catch up with vaccinations. This is because there is an alarming vaccine gap between high-income and low-income countries. In the future, recommendations for boosters will definitely come,’ Dr. Abraham stated.
There is still a vaccination scarcity in Maharashtra. ‘Experts have stated that the second dose should be administered in the prescribed time limit after the first dose. If this doesn’t happen then the effectiveness of the vaccine may go down. So as of now for Pune, we have decided to prioritize second doses,’ said Ajit Pawar.
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