Transfer Covaxin know-how to other players: Andhra CM to PM

In a letter addressed to the Prime Minister on Monday, Reddy conveyed the urgency to ramp up vaccination capacities as the only viable solution to tackle the Covid pandemic.

The state, which is currently reporting around 20,300 new cases everyday, has imposed partial curfew to check the spread of the virus. 

However, Reddy feels that only mass vaccination can prove effective, and vaccine shortages must be addressed on a war-footing.

"In the past, we have been able to demonstrate our capability to administer 6 lakh vaccines per day. However, due to short supply of vaccine, we are not able to vaccinate our population at large," the CM noted in his letter.

Pointing out that the indigenous Covaxin is a collaborative outcome of Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)-National Institute of Virology (NIV), the Chief Minister said that the company's current production capabilities are insufficient to cater to the massive requirements in the current scenario.

"We would request you to please direct Bharat Biotech to do technology transfer of manufacturing Covaxin, and ICMR-NIV to provide the viral strain to whoever is interested and capable of manufacturing the vaccine," the letter read.