The Drug Controller General of India (DGCI) on Friday gave permission to Bharat Biotech for intranasal booster dose trials. The trials will be done at 9 different sites.
The Hyderabad-based manufacturer had proposed the booster dose for those who have been already been innoculated with Covishield and Covaxin vaccines.
According to a source, Bharat Biotech aims to conduct clinical trials on 5,000 healthy subjects: half or 2,500 individuals who have received Covishield and another 2,500 who have been administered Covaxin.
There will be a gap of around six months between the second and the intranasal booster dose. The source said that the nasal booster vaccine is likely to be launched in India by March following clinical trials.