If vaccine is reliable, why no govt functionary took shot: Manish Tewari

New Delhi: Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the world's biggest vaccination drive in the country, the Congress launched its attack on the Centre saying vaccines were being allowed to be used without the mandatory trials of Phase 3.

Speaking to IANS Congress leader and MP from Anandpur Sahib Manish Tewari asked if the vaccine is so reliable then why no important government functionary has taken the shot?

He said that in every country of the world the head of the government has taken the vaccine, in US, President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris have taken the vaccine shots. In the UK, Queen Elizabeth and Prime Minister Boris Johnson have taken it and other countries there respective heads of state have done the same thing."

"In India, why has no responsible functionary of the government taken the vaccine shots first if it is so safe and reliable," Tewari asked.

He said, "As the vaccine has been rolled out, there are certain disturbing and obfuscated questions with the government using a soaring rhetoric of the vaccine nationalism. The first question about the efficacy... is that in the absence of a regulatory architecture -- requiring licencing of the drugs and vaccines for the emergency use... It is perplexing that same has been permitted by the Drug Controller.

"While Covishield has not drawn ire of eminent medical experts, the Covaxin has been questioned, and by not allowing people to choose the vaccine that to take it militates the doctrine of informed consent that lies at the heart of medical ethics," he added

Modi earlier launched the vaccination drive aimed at ending the pandemic which so far has killed 1,52,093 people in the country and ravaged the economy.

Addressing the country digitally, the Prime Minister said that India managed to make two 'Made-in-India' vaccines in a very short period which usually takes years.

Modi said that avoid "rumours" as the Drug Controller General of India has approved the vaccines for emergency use.

Lauding the efforts of scientists who are involved in vaccine research, Modi said they deserve special praise for making these vaccines and that "the vaccines will provide us a decisive victory against the deadly pandemic".

The Prime Minister further reminded people to get two doses of the vaccine, explaining that "there should be a gap of almost one month between the first and second dose".

"Only two weeks after the second dose, your body will develop the necessary strength against coronavirus," the Prime Minister said.

Noting that this kind of vaccination campaign on such a large scale has never been done in history, Modi said: "India is vaccinating three crore people in its first phase of vaccination starting today and the government will bear the cost of the vaccination to be administered to healthcare workers".

In the second phase, the Prime Minister said, "We have to take it to 30 crore".