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The Pasteur Institute of India (PII) at Coonoor in Nilgiris district of Tamil Nadu will be able to supply vaccines for the country’s Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) by the first half of 2023, according to Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Mansukh Mandaviya.
The minister was responding to a letter written to the Centre in April by DMK’s Rajya Sabha MP P Wilson seeking production of Covid vaccines — both Covishield and Covaxin — at PII; the Integrated Vaccine Complex (IVC) at Chengalpattu and the King’s Institute in Chennai. All the three have necessary machinery and infrastructure to manufacture vaccines on a large scale, Wilson said.
The minister said that PII Diphtheria, Pertussis and Tetanus vaccine facility has been upgraded as per current good manufacturing practice standards. At present, the facility is under qualification stage and performance qualification of facilities, utilities and critical equipment will be completed by November, and thereafter the trial batches of the vaccines will be initiated. The institute will be able to supply vaccines to UIP by the first half of 2023, the minister said.
On the recommencement of the production of vaccines at IVC, the minister said HLL Biotech did not receive any bid for using the facility even by the extended due date and thus the tender expired on May 21.
On King’s Institute in Chennai, the minister said it comes under the administrative control of the State government.
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