India to ship 20 lakh vaccines to Dhaka, Pak explores choices

While India plans to ship 20 lakh doses of Covid-19 vaccines to Bangladesh, one other neighbour, Pakistan, is exploring choices to get made-in-India vaccines, both by a world alliance for vaccines or by the bilateral route, The Indian Express has learnt.
On Monday, authorities in Bangladesh confirmed that on Wednesday, January 20, a specifically outfitted aircraft will carry 20 lakh doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine — manufactured in India by the Serum Institute of India below the title Covishield — to Dhaka. The consignment shall be handed over to the Bangladesh authorities by the Indian High Commission in Dhaka. Bangladesh has had greater than 5 lakh circumstances of Covid, with about 7,900 deaths to date.
Pakistan’s transfer to supply Indian vaccines comes after the nation’s drug regulator, the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), over the weekend authorised Oxford-AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use. Pakistan has reported greater than 5 lakh Covid circumstances and virtually 11,000 deaths.
Sources stated the pondering in Islamabad is that it will possibly get the vaccine by Covax, an alliance arrange by the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI), Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and World Health Organisation. The alliance has pledged free vaccines for 20 per cent of the inhabitants of round 190 international locations, together with Pakistan. Pakistan expects to get the primary consignment from Covax simply after the beginning of the second quarter of 2021.
But, for the remaining inhabitants, Pakistan hopes, the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine in addition to Bharat Biotech-ICMR’s Covaxin will be procured by bilateral preparations. Alternatively, Pakistan can procure the India-made vaccines by a 3rd nation, however that will push up prices.
A supply instructed The Indian Express that one of many vaccine producers in India has over the previous few weeks reached out to the Pakistan authorities on the availability of vaccines.
While tensions between India and Pakistan have impacted bilateral commerce between the 2 international locations, the availability of “life-saving medicines” is exempted from restrictions.
Bilateral commerce between the 2 neighbours has virtually come to a standstill — first after the Pulwama terror assault in February 2019 and later, after the particular standing of Jammu and Kashmir was withdrawn.

Sources in New Delhi stated the Pakistan authorities has not but formally approached the Indian authorities for the vaccines. Given the tensions, vaccine diplomacy might be key to unlocking the ties.
Pakistan officers stated that over the weekend, they registered the AstraZeneca vaccine with DRAP since its efficacy is over 90 per cent.
Special Assistant to Pakistan Prime Minister on Health Dr Faisal Sultan, who confirmed that DRAP had authorised AstraZeneca, instructed Dawn, “We have registered the vaccine as its efficacy is over 90 per cent and will try to get it through alternative arrangements. What is more important is that it will enable us to acquire the vaccine through Covax as it cannot be allowed in the country without DRAP’s approval.”
With the Pakistan authorities saying that it’s going to present vaccines “free-of-cost”, sources stated the institution prefers AstraZeneca and China’s Sinopharm to Pfizer and Moderna. Oxford-AstraZeneca’s vaccine has a greater efficacy than the Chinese vaccine, will be saved at a a lot larger temperature than Pfizer and isn’t very costly.