Over 50 million Pfizer vaccines ready to be delivered to India; talks ongoing for 'partial indemnity'

Nearly 50-60 million doses of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine are ready to be delivered to India even as talks continue for a "partial indemnity" on the impact of the vaccine with New Delhi.  

As of now, a "complete waiver" won't be given on the Pfizer vaccine by India. As per sources, "reactions to the vaccine are indemnified" but the "reaction amounting to death or serious ailment like paralysis can't be given waiver and will carry liability".

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However, the talks are ongoing on priority, and are expected to conclude by the end of this month. 

Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine is an mRNA vaccine that instructs the cells to generate the spike protein found on the surface of the novel coronavirus. This, in turn, generates an immune response. mRNA vaccines do not contain any virus particles — weakened or dead parts of a virus. Like other vaccines, Pfizer can also cause allergic reactions such as breathing difficulty, fast heartbeat, dizziness, and weakness.

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The other key question with the Pfizer vaccine is logistics, considering it requires cold temperature. For that, logistics control infrastructure is needed to create a temperature-controlled vaccine. The developed countries, today, have excess supply and don't need reserves of this vaccine, leading to spare capacity for India. 

These important issues were also discussed during India's External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar's US visit. The visit, from May 24-28, focused on Covid-related cooperations between India and the US.