Radiant

  It is a great moment of hope as India begins the world’s largest vaccination drive, but we must remember that it is too early to think of an absolute triumph over COVID-19. India is reportedly planning to use 600 million vaccines doses to the most vulnerable sections in the next 6-8 months. But to break the chain of viral transmission it is essential for at least 70% of the 1.3 billion strong Indian population to acquire immunity to SARS CoV 2 virus, leading to herd immunity at the national level. Numerically, this amounts to 910 million people. Since both the vaccines being used in India need two doses, this would necessitate 1820 million doses of vaccines to achieve sufficient vaccine coverage to reach population immunity. [1] What are the different vaccines available (or under final stages of testing) and what are the differences between them? Researchers have been working worldwide on vaccines against SARS-CoV-2. Through unprecedented public/private partnerships, a few ...