ICMR toes WHO line, says booster shots not priority

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Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 22

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Monday reiterated its stand on Covid-19 boosters saying it was not a priority and administering the first two doses to the adult population was the current priority.

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ICMR chief Balram Bhargava said there was no current scientific evidence supporting the boosters.

Bhargava also downplayed studies that earlier claimed reduction in antibodies to Covid-19 after a few months of inoculation and therefore the need for boosters.

He said there was no need to measure antibodies as the immunity responses build up at various levels. On a study by one of its own regional centres in Bhubaneshwar that said Covid vaccine induced antibodies lasted from two to four months and therefore boosters could help, Bhargava said, “Booster doses of Covid vaccine are not a central theme at the moment in the scientific discussion. Getting two doses of the vaccine is a major priority. Several scientific rationale are now available to suggest that antibody levels should not be measured. You can have all kinds of immunity responses post vaccination — from cellular to mucosal immunity. These studies commenting on antibodies are piecemeal studies.”