Experts divided on need to vaccinate kids below 12 years against Covid

Covid Task Force chief V K Paul had earlier said that it will not be possible to give a particular timeline on when Covid vaccination will start for children

As India gears up to vaccinate children and adolescents against coronavirus, some health experts have suggested that there is no need to vaccinate children below 12 years of age.

“The purpose of vaccination is to save lives. And that risk is not there for children. A committee may be technically competent, but from a public health point of view, there is no justification,” Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Committee of ICMR NIE, Jayprakash Muliyil, told Business Standard, stressing that the purpose of vaccination is to reduce transmission.

Also read: India’s 100 crore Covid-19 vaccination milestone hides a worrying divide

Top virologist Gangandeep Kang reiterated Muliyil's point stressing that lack of granular data on children is a major issue.

“Am reluctant to vaccinate children now for the reason of science, and also for the reason of ethics, as many elderly have not been covered,” Kang said.

“There is a concept of immune imprinting for some infections such as influenza, dengue and even HIV. The first time you encounter something and respond to it, that shapes your immune system to all subsequent versions of that same thing,” she explained adding that it matters which shot the kids take first.

An expert panel recently recommended the emergency use of Bharat Biotech's Covaxin on children and adolescents in the age group of 2-18 years. However, the Centre is exercising full caution before it finally kickstarts the Covid-19 vaccination drive for children in India.

“If the vaccination is to help children who are at risk of dying, then there is no evidence that the vaccine will work. Many can get infection even after vaccination,” Muliyil said.

No timeline on when vaccination for kids will begin

The government will take a final decision on vaccinating children and adolescents against coronavirus on the basis of overall scientific rationale as well as the supply situation of vaccines available for those below 18 years old, Covid Task Force chief V K Paul had earlier said.

Also read: List of Covid vaccines for kids and status reports

While noting it will not be possible now to give a particular timeline on when Covid vaccination will start for children, Paul had said, "The preparation for incorporation of Zydus Cadila's vaccine into the vaccination programme is proceeding well, training is already being held. NTAGI advice for the best use of the vaccine is explored. So soon, this will be rolled out".

According to Paul, Covid infections in children are very mild or asymptomatic, and that is one side of the story. On the other side, he said that once there is enough vaccine available that can be used in children, "so why not protect them".

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