India’s proposed ban on the export of its COVID-19 vaccine will not be applicable for Bangladesh as New Delhi has assured Dhaka of supplying the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine at an appropriate time, Foreign Minister Dr A K Abdul Momen said here on Monday. India’s drug regulator Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) on Sunday approved Oxford COVID-19 vaccine Covishield, manufactured by the Serum Institute, and indigenously developed Covaxin of Bharat Biotech for restricted emergency use in the country, paving the way for a massive inoculation drive.
The Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII), the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, has tied up with AstraZeneca to manufacture Covishield while Covaxin has been indigenously developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Momen, addressing a press briefing here, said that the first consignment of the vaccine co-manufactured by India’s SII is expected to reach Bangladesh towards the…