Covid vaccines cleared for under-18; but was it too late?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi turned Santa on Christmas day, as he announced Covid vaccination for children in between the age group of 15 to 18 years. The vaccination for children has started from Jan 3 with India made Covaxin.

Experts, long been accusing government for sitting over kid Covid vaccination, feel the step might have come bit too late with the educational institutes have long been opened and Omicron variant has already started to spread across India.

Though India has started vaccination for under-18 group in January 2022; the technical committee of Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has cleared the emergency use of Covaxin within kids in October, 2021 after a detailed analysis of the trial results submitted by Bharat Biotech, manufactures of Covaxin.

Earlier in August, ZyCov- D, another vaccine for children below 18 years, received ‘emergency use authorisation’ (EUA) for vaccinating children in India; but is yet to be rolled out within community.

Experts point out that with schools opening up in many states within the country, mass Covid vaccination would have reduced the risk of children being affected due to exposure in schools; especially with the new variant Omicron in horizon.

“India has just started vaccination within kids despite the scientists cleared it sometimes back. Though the risk of children and young from Covid infection seems to be less but still they need to be protected at the earliest especially with the omicron is reportedly infecting children as well” said SubhrojyotiBhowmick, a vaccine expert associated with Peerless hospital, Kolkata; just before the

“After detailed deliberation, the committee recommended for grant of market authorisation of the vaccine for the age group of 2 to 18 years for restricted use in emergency situations,” said the expert panel of DCGI in a statement issued on Oct 12. However, the vaccination could not be rolled out earlier as requisite government clearance was not provided.

“The nationwide survey done by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in June-July 2021 showed that adult and child populations are almost equally infected” explained RajibDasgupta, chairperson of Centre of Social Medicine & Community Health in Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

“I really do not have a clue why the child vaccination could not be initiated in India earlier and the union government was sitting on its formal clearance. It has only increased the risk for the children as they have started to go schools; and moreover with Omicron variant is in circulation” said ManasGumta, a key functionary of a doctor association.

“There may be several reasons for the government for not acting earlier. First, India’s child population is huge; and secondly, once government agreed to give adult vaccines free, they possibly cannot take money for children vaccination and free vaccination can bring huge pressure on its fiscal situation “said another expert.

“Government is seemingly banking, and buying time, on the Indian study data from the first and second waves that confirms that although infection rates are similar, symptomatic disease in children is much less and severe disease requiring hospitalisation and possibilities of death are rare” further explained the expert warning that the situation may change once Omicron variants gets a toe hold in the country.

“Once Omicron starts to spread the unvaccinated children will become sitting duck to infection” he added.

“Presently the rate of children infection is quite low in Kolkata. According to figures assessed from Nov 15 to 24, in all 2162 persons were found to be affected by Covid in Kolkata, out of which 148 were children below 18 years; i.e less than 7 percent” stated Tapan Mukherjee, the health advisor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation.

Mukherjee informed only one-third within children belonged to under-12 category.

While India is dillydallying with children vaccination several countries, particularly United States and Israel, have started children vaccination.“To date, we have already vaccinated over 4 million 5- to 11-year-olds and 15 million adolescents” announced an US government communique on December 2.

Israel has also completed vaccination to about 60000 kids in the range of 5 to 11, and no serious side effects have been reported.