- Reports suggest many vaccine candidates for SARS-COV-2, COVID-19, are under different stages of the trail all around the world. Few of them have completed Phase I and II trials, and few out of the few have already entered the crucial Phase III trials as well conveying a cheerful bit of news amidst the pall of gloom surrounding us. Experts out there are hopeful of inventing an effective vaccine in the next few months giving credence to the belief that humankind may be in for a breather from the dreaded virus eventually.
Pc: The Financial Express
- Most intriguingly, when, where, and how the vaccine will be finally revealed to humankind assumes greater importance as the mad rush to secure the elixir of life pales everything else in comparison for the governments. As aftereffects of the pandemic continue to disparage all around even as the stuttering economy struggles to pick up pace owing to tangible and intangible considerations. The government authorities are leaving no stone unturned in ensuring the economic activities are unhindered though the virus appears nowhere near getting vanquished in a trice. Thus, any hopeful news on the vaccine front would be welcomed with open arms.
- To its credit, the government authorities are incessantly propagating the inevitability of living with the virus as resorting to unyielding lockdown measures is nothing but counterproductive for the sustenance of livelihoods. Successive unlock guidelines amply emphasize the necessity to move on with our day-to-day lives without compromising on the health and safety guidelines. As we are aware, in the absence of a vaccine, the only available way out to keep the virus at bay is to observe social distancing, wearing a mask covering nose and mouth, and frequent handwashing regimen.
Pc: The Economic Times
- With encouraging signs of vaccine invention appearing to see the day of light sooner than later, the government machinery should be working overtime to put in place a comprehensive Standard Operating Protocol earmarking the modus operandi to implement vaccination measures. Hypothetically speaking, in the event of vaccine emerging in the next few months, the authorities should impartially identify and prioritize all those beneficiaries who would be required to be vaccinated for the first phase to set things rolling.
- The Union Health Minister has broadly categorized beneficiaries namely healthcare professionals, frontline workers like police personnel and municipal staff, those aged over fifty years, and younger persons with comorbidities. Bigger challenges confronting the government authorities would be to manufacture adequate ancillary equipment like syringes and vials – incommensurate with the dense population – setting up of cold chains for ensuring the effectiveness of the vaccine, mobilizing and training vaccinators, proper identification of physical infrastructure to administer the vaccine, and of course, setting up an IT infrastructure for data reporting, collating, and surveillance.
Pc: The Arcade Hotel
- Reports suggest a requirement of sixty crore doses for thirty crore people in the first phase which is a gigantic logistical exercise demanding minute planning and execution. Another aspect the government should consider now is to earmark substantial funds which could be in the range of 50,000 crores to 80,000 crores, a conservative estimate. Indeed, envisaging an unambiguous plan would render the government’s efforts that much easier.
