Covid vaccine: Ready to undergo trial if it helps people, says Hakim

Kolkata: Bharat Biotech's Covid vaccine arrived in Kolkata for the final round of clinical trials which would be conducted at NICED in December.

As many as 1,000 participants would be administered the vaccine during the final phase of trial in the city. As the Covid vaccine reaches the city for the final trial, there has been speculation that the city's Mayor Firhad Hakim may be the first person on whom the vaccine would be administered.

Hakim on Wednesday said: "I am yet to receive any official proposal in this regard. If it comes and I am of any use for the needs of the people in Kolkata, I will be grateful. I am ready to even lay down my life to save the people of the state, if required. I am fortunate if people get the benefits of vaccines after being applied upon me on an experimental basis."

According to sources in the NICED, the final phase trail would begin in December. It would be applied on around 25,800 people across the country out of which 1,000 are from Kolkata. The phase III clinical trials of India's first indigenous Covid vaccine have begun in other cities as well.

Meanwhile, the health department of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is providing free treatment to the post COVID 19 patients at its Urban Health centres. The KMC has 140 Urban Health units across the city.

Dr Tapan Mukherjee, advisor, KMC's health department said once Covid infected patients are released from hospitals they need check up for the next three months. The KMC is giving costly inhalers along with the Spacer device free of cost to the patients along with other medicines that are required to prevent clotting of blood.

The doctors of the Urban health units treat all sorts of patients who suffer from heart diseases, COPD, diabetes, stroke and are experts in public health management.