- Pharma
- 2 min read
Mumbai: Centre signals release of funds for making Covaxin at Haffkine
The Centre had assured Haffkine Biopharma a grant of Rs 65 crore while the state had promised Rs 94 crore to build a biosafety level-III laboratory where the vaccine would be produced.
The Centre had assured Haffkine Biopharma a grant of Rs 65 crore while the state had promised Rs 94 crore to build a biosafety level-III laboratory where the vaccine would be produced. Sources told the news agency that the Centre has recently green-signalled the release of around 50% (approximately Rs 30 crore) of the grants. The state till now has released only Rs 10 crore of its promised share. Medical education secretary Saurabh Vijay confirmed that funds are coming as per the approved project.
In order to boost the production of Covaxin in 2021, the Centre announced mission Covid Suraksha to speed up the production of indigenous vaccines. Haffkine was among three public sectors companies chosen by the Department of Biotechnology. Bharat Biotech, the Hyderabad-based creator of Covaxin, was to transfer its technology to these labs to start production. Claims were that the production capacity of indigenously developed Covaxin will increase 6-7 fold by July-August 2021 once these labs come up.
However, after promptly finalising the plot on which the lab would come up within the Parel compound, the institute took several months to float tenders for technical consultants who would build the lab. In September last year, the tenders were floated but the consulting firm was finalised only by early this year.
More crucially, the estimated cost of the project shot up significantly, as per sources. It almost doubled from Rs 160 crore to Rs 300 crore, putting a big question mark on viability. "There were a lot of questions raised on the sudden increase in budget. Neither the state nor the Centre was willing to cover the additional cost, which led to further delay," said a source, adding that the institute had to go back to the drawing board and review the plans again. The consultants have now found that the project could be implemented in the given cost following which things started rolling again.
Another expert in the know said the emergence of monkeypox and a likely vaccine demand could have also pushed the agencies to renew their interest. However, even after funds come in, the creation of the laboratory alone would take six months followed by the process of validation. Technology transfer has not started from Bharat Biotech either. Haffkine Biopharma could be able to produce 22.8 crore doses of Covaxin in a year once the facility is ready but concerns remain about the demand with the coverage of first and second doses crossing over 90% and 80% in most states.
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