India to launch first Covid nasal vaccine on January 26
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New Delhi: Bharat Biotech is all set to launch its intranasal COVID-19 vaccine iNCOVACC on January 26. This is the first of its kind in the country, said the company's chairman and managing director Krishna Ella.
"Our nasal vaccine will be officially launched on January 26, on Republic Day." He was speaking at the India International Science Festival in Bhopal during the 'New Frontiers in Science' segment organised at the Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology (MANIT).
The homegrown company announced in December that it will sell the intranasal vaccine for Rs 325 per shot for procurement by the government and Rs 800 per shot for private vaccination centres.
The vaccine will be used as a heterologous booster. It will be first available in private hospitals. It received approval from the Drugs Controller General of India in November for restricted use in an emergency situation for those above 18.
An intranasal vaccine stimulates a broad immune response - neutralising IgG, mucosal IgA, and T cell responses. The immune response at the nasal mucosa which is the site of infection is crucial to blocking infection and transmission of Covid-19.