It’s a matter of great relief to India that nine countries of the European Union have approved Serum Institute of India’s (SII) Covishield vaccine for ‘Green Pass’.
The countries which have approved Covishield for ‘Green Pass’ include Austria, Germany, Switzerland ,Slovenia, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Estonia and Spain.
This incident is expected to bring a smile on the face of many Indians who are vaccinated with Covshield against Covid-19 and will be travelling to these European countries in near future. The Green Pass or the EU Digital COVID certificate is an evidence that proves vaccination of a person against Covid-19. If the authorities in a particular EU nation demand a vaccination certificate against Covid-19, a person can show his / her Green Pass.
Till date the European Medicines Agency (EMA) had cleared four Covid-19 vaccines for green pass. The vaccines are Comirnaty by Pfizer/ BioNtech, Moderna, Vaxzervria by AstraZeneca and Janssen by Johnson and Johnson.
The development of European Union countries approving Covishield for ‘Green Pass’ comes a day after the Indian government asked the EU to consider permitting entry to Covishield vaccinated Indians into their countries.
Also read: Govt Panel Against Serum Institute’s Covovax Trial On Children Aged 2-17 Years
Even though Covishield has received a nod for the Green Pass, but future of Covaxin yet to be known.
The Green Pass is set to be rolled out in the European Union from July 1 which will facilitate free movement of vaccinated persons to the countries for business, work, study or other purposes.
In view of the tensions revolving about the issue of Green Pass to Indians travelling to Europe, the SII CEO Adar Poonawalla on June 28 twitted , “I realise that a lot of Indians who have taken COVISHIELD are facing issues with travel to the E.U., I assure everyone, I have taken this up at the highest levels and hope to resolve this matter soon, both with regulators and at a diplomatic level with countries.”
As of June 30, 2021 India has administered over 335 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to its citizens. This includes single dose as well as double doses of the vaccine. Covishield and Covaxin are the two vaccines which are widely used in India. The Covishield vaccine is an Oxford- AstraZeneca vaccine and is manufactured under the license of Serum Institute of India. On the other hand, Covaxin is India’s indigenous product and is manufactured by Bharat Biotech.
Ms Kalinga