A tweet claiming that the government has approved Bharat Biotech's COVID-19 vaccine 'Covaxin' for children above the age of 12 is fake, the Centre said on Sunday. No such approval has been granted by the government and currently, citizens above the age of 18 are eligible to get vaccinated against COVID-19, it added.
"A tweet has claimed that Bharat Biotech's vaccine, Covaxin, has been approved for children above 12 years. #PIBFactCheck: This claim is #Fake. No such approval has been given by the Government of India. Currently, citizens above the age of 18 are eligible for #COVID19Vaccination," Press Information Bureau (PIB) tweeted from its fact check handle.
The indigenously-developed Covaxin is among the vaccines approved by India's drug regulator for emergency use and is being administered as part of the nationwide vaccination drive. It is developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech in association with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the National Institute of Virology (NIV).
Meanwhile, the Centre has provided more than 17.56 crore vaccine doses to the States and Union Territories free of cost till now, said the Union Health Ministry on Sunday.
According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the government has so far provided as many as 17,56,20,810 vaccine doses to States and UTs free of cost. Out of this the total consumption, including wastages, is 16,83,78,796 doses.
"As many as 72,42,014 COVID-19 vaccine doses are still available with the states and UTs to be administered. States with a negative balance are showing more consumption (including wastage) than vaccine supplied as they have not reconciled the vaccine they have supplied to Armed Forces," the ministry said. It further said that 46,61,960 vaccine doses will be received in addition by the States and UTs within the next 3 days.
(With ANI inputs)
