Evaluate efficacy of vaccines against Omicron: Parliamentary panel to govt

NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel looking into the Covid-19 outbreak and management has asked the government to expeditiously evaluate the efficacy of vaccine against the Omicron strain, whose spread has led to a scare across the world.

The panel on health and family welfare led by Rajya Sabha member Ram Gopal Yadav in its report on the 'Outbreak of Pandemic Covid-19 and its Management' tabled in the parliament on Friday asked the Centre to focus on ensuring availability of beds, supply of oxygen cylinders and essential medicines.

Besides, the government must aggressively keep pushing the vaccination programme in terms of granting approval to more vaccines and increasing the vaccination rate.

Study the efficacy of vaccines against Omicron

The committee also asked the government to measure the efficacy of vaccines with regard to the Omicron variant.

"With the incidence of highly mutated Omicron (B.1.1.529) strain of Covid virus, the committee strongly believes that the efficacy of the vaccines must be evaluated. The concerns with regards to the new strain developing immunoescape mechanism need to be critically addressed," the panel said in its report.

The committee said it apprehends that rise in mutations in the virus may lead to reporting of more virulent and transmissible strain of Covid virus in the country.

The Committee, therefore, strongly recommends the health ministry to adopt Zero Tolerance Covid-19 Policy and closely track Covid cases across the country, it said in the report.

India has been one of the few countries that managed to produce vaccines capable of preventing Covid-19. However, the efficacy of Covaxin as well as Covishield is not fully known.

Consider travel restrictions

With the new strain of Covid, Omicron (B.1.1.529, exhibiting 30+ mutations, tracking and testing facilities especially at airports must also be strengthened, the reports said. It recommended that the ministry explore imposing travel restrictions and isolating passengers from 'at-risk' countries.

Immune response of children

Taking note of the debate on the opening of schools, the panel asked whether the Health ministry had done any studies regarding various age-group of students with respect to their immune response, mental health, ability to practice social distancing norms and other critical parameters affecting their health before allowing reopening of schools. The Committee maybe apprised of studies carried out on impact of online classes, absence of classroom schooling on overall development of children, it asked.

Regulate price of life saving drugs

The panel asked the government to evolve a mechanism to regulate the pricing of life saving drugs, particularly during emergencies and its effective implementation. It also sought more spending on public health.

Inadequate measures during second wave

In view of the loss of life during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, the panel felt the measures taken by the ministry to contain the spread of SARS-COV-2 proved to be squarely inadequate. The committee believes that focus should be on strengthening of health infrastructure, it said.

Expand testing capability

The panel expressed pain that although the second wave came almost six months after the peak of the first wave, India’s testing infrastructure remained abysmal and highly insufficient. India must realise its full testing capacity and augment it further, it said.

The first two cases of the Omicron Covid variant in the country were reported on Thursday.

Health ministry official Luv Agarwal said two men in southern Karnataka state, aged 66 and 46, had tested positive for the variant.

While, there is no evidence to suggest that existing vaccines do not work on Omicron, some of the mutations reported on Spike gene may decrease the efficacy of existing vaccines.

However, vaccine protection is also by antibodies as well as by cellular immunity, which is expected to be relatively better preserved. Hence vaccines are expected to still offer protection against severe disease and, vaccination with the available vaccines is crucial.