Cipla gets nod to import Moderna Covid-19 vaccine

New Delhi: India's drug regulator DCGI has granted permission to Mumbai-based Cipla to import Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine for restricted emergency use in the country, officials said on Tuesday.

Moderna's vaccine will be the fourth COVID-19 jab to be available in India after Covishield, Covaxin and Sputnik. "An application was received from Moderna through their Indian partner Cipla following which Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine has been granted restricted emergency use authorisation by the drug regulator.

"This new permission for restricted emergency use potentially opens up a clear possibility of this vaccine being imported to India in the near future," NITI Aayog Member (Health) Dr V K Paul said at a press conference.

There are four vaccines with such licensure -- Covishield, Covaxin, Sputnik and Moderna, he said. "Our efforts to invite and to have other internationally developed vaccines specifically Pfizer and J&J also continue. Those processes are on.

We are also looking at increasing the production of availability of vaccines that are being manufactured in our country," Paul added.

In separate communications, Moderna on June 27 informed DCGI that the US government has agreed to donate a certain number of doses of its COVID-19 vaccine through COVAX to India for use here and sought an approval from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO).