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New Delhi: The estimated manufacturing capacity of the COVID-19 vaccine, Covishield, is 70-100 million doses per month, while the indigenously developed Covaxin has a planned production capacity of 150 million doses per year, the Department of Biotechnology told a parliamentary panel.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment, Forests and Climate Change also strongly urged the department to explore deeper into developing a cure for certain rare diseases, for which the country is, by and large, dependent on imports and patients have to shell out exorbitant amount of money for the cost and their excise/import duty.
The panel also desired to know the status of the current vaccine production capacity with respect to the two approved vaccines, and how soon could these vaccines be made available to non-priority population.
"The inactivated vaccine candidate, COVAXIN, developed jointly by Bharat Biotech and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), has a planned production capacity of 150 million doses per year," the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) told the panel.
"The estimated manufacturing capacity of the non-replicating viral vector vaccine, COVISHIELD, by the Serum Institute of India Pvt Ltd, is about 70-100 million doses per month," it said.
The report was tabled in the Rajya Sabha on Monday.
30 other vaccines against coronavirus are at different stages of trial.
(with inputs from agencies)