On COVID-19 testing from gargled water and emergency authorisation for vaccine, ICMR says this

Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Director General Balram Bhargava today told a Parliamentary panel that an emergency authorisation of a vaccine could be considered if the Centre decides so. He also said that the phase-two clinical trial of two indigenously developed COVID-19 vaccine candidates have almost been completed. 

Bhargava told the parliamentary standing committee on home affairs that the vaccine candidates developed by Bharat Biotech, Cadila and the Serum Institute of India are at different stages of trial, PTI quoted an MP present in the meeting as saying. 

The MP said that the COVID-19 vaccine candidates of Bharat Biotech and Cadila are nearing completion of phase-two trails.

Also, the one handled by the Serum Institute of India and developed by Oxford University will enter phase-2 (b) trials this weekend for which 1,700 patients have been identified at 17 centres across the country. 

As per PTI, Bhargava said that normally the final trial of a vaccine takes about six to nine months but if the governments decide, an emergency authorisation could be considered.

COVID-19 testing from gargled water

When asked about the saliva test cleared by FDA in the US for rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2, Bhargava told the panel that taking samples from gargled water is already under consideration and further details will be available soon, PTI reported. 

Guidelines to stop stigmatisation 

As per PTI report, ICMR has agreed to the panel members’ suggestion of reviewing the existing limited set of guidelines relating to management of psychological stress. ICMR also told the committee that it may soon come out with comprehensive revised guidelines to help all the concerned to cope with the stress caused by the outbreak of the viral disease.

The parliamentary panel’s meeting was chaired by senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Anand Sharma. It lasted for over four hours and discussed various aspects of management of the COVID-19 pandemic.