A consortium of 190 countries has booked two billion doses of Covaxin.

By: Varun Kumar
January 20 2021

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Covaxin, India's COVID-19 vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech, did not receive any pre-orders.In a tweet made on January 3, 2021, editor-in-chief and chairman of India TV's Rajat Sharma claimed that those skeptical about Covaxin should know that 190 countries have booked the vaccine in advance. Bharat Biotech's Covaxin is the only vaccine developed by India. On January 5, Rajat Sharma clarified his previous tweet, saying that COVAX is a World Health Organization (WHO) program where a consortium of 190 countries has booked two billion vaccines. However, Covaxin is India's own vaccine, which has received government approval. COVAX aims to provide COVID-19 vaccines to everyone around the world. About 190 nations have participated in the initiative. On December 18, 2020, COVAX announced that it has agreements in place to access nearly two billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine candidates. Those agreements mean that all COVAX's 190 participating and eligible economies will have access to the doses in the first half of 2021. Contrary to what Rajat Sharma said, Bharat Biotech is not a part of the COVAX program. Instead, the Serum Institute of India is a part of the COVAX program. It appears that the word "COVAX" has been mistaken for the name of the COVID-19 vaccine being developed in India. It is incorrect to claim that 190 countries have already placed orders for Covaxin. CORRECTION: This claim has been edited for clarity, and the date of the tweet in question has been corrected. The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19 including symptoms, prevention and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organisation or your national healthcare authority.