‘Current Covid strain is mild, 5-6 mn Covovax doses already produced,’ says Serum Institute’s CEO Adar Poonawalla

Adar Poonawalla, Chief Executive Officer of Serum Institute of India (SII), said that the prevalent strain of Covid is mild, and that the company has already produced 5 to 6 million doses of the Covovax vaccine.

Poonawalla shared the development while talking to reporters amid rising coronavirus cases in the country since March.

India has reported 12,193 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, which made the number of active cases rise to 67,556, according to the Union health ministry data.

Poonawalla said: "Currently, the COVID strain is not severe; it's just a mild strain. Just for precautionary measures, elderly people can get the booster dose, but it would be their choice whether or not to take it. Five to six million doses of Covovax are available. We will also produce the same amount of Covishield doses in the next two to three months.”

"We are providing Covovax in the US and Europe. It is the only COVID vaccine made in India, which is approved in the US and Europe. Currently, the demand is very small," he added.

According to a health bulletin of the Maharashtra government on Friday, the XBB.1.16 variant of Omicron is currently the dominant strain in the state.

The Centre on Friday requested eight states, including Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra, to keep a close eye on any potential virus outbreaks and take immediate action if necessary to stop the outbreak from spreading across.

Watch: Earth Day 2023 - Theme, Significance, How to Participate