Corona Vaccine Not Possible Before 2021, Parliament Panel Told : Sources

New Delhi : A parliamentary committee was informed on Friday that the vaccine for COVID-19 is expected to be developed by early next year. The Department of Science and Technology, the Department of Biotechnology and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government made presentations to the Committee on the Centre’s preparations for COVID-19. These presentations were made before the Standing Parliamentary Committee on Science and Technology, Environment and Climate Change. Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh is the chairman of the committee. Ramesh and six other members attended the meeting.

Sources said the panel was told that a vaccine for COVID-19 could only be available until early next year. This was the first meeting of the committee since the lockdown was imposed on March 25 due to COVID-19. Rajya Sabha Speaker M Venkaiah Naidu expressed happiness over the resumption of parliamentary committee meetings. Naidu said the delay in resuming parliamentary committee meetings was due to circumstances beyond control. “I am happy that three-and-a-half months after the last sitting of Parliament on March 23, the Standing Parliamentary Committees on Departments have resumed functioning,” he said.

He said everyone was anxious for the resumption of work by these committees, “but the delay was due to circumstances beyond our control.” Naidu said the corona virus epidemic had affected these committees working on behalf of Parliament. The Vice President said that all possible measures were taken for the meetings of the committee, such as adhering to social distance, wearing masks.”

“I will still request you to allow digital meetings as Parliament is not likely to convene till at least next month,” Ramesh said in a tweet requesting Naidu to hold digital meetings. At the meeting of the Standing Committee on Science and Technology, the members discussed in detail the preparations of the government for COVID-19 and the ways to deal with it. According to sources, the members present at the meeting also requested digital deliberations.

Ramesh tweeted and said that the meeting was informative and useful. However he regretted that we are not allowed to hold digital meetings. If this happened then more MPs could participate. The meeting of the Standing Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs is scheduled to take place on July 15. The members of the committee are demanding digital meetings but the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and the Speaker of the Rajya Sabha have said that this requires a change in the rules by the Rules Committee of Parliament and approval from Parliament.