New Delhi: Cyrus Poonawalla, SII Chairman-MD, appreciated government measures, especially the Drug Controller, for the quick launch of the COVID vaccine in the country.

Cyrus Poonawalla said, "One of the major reasons we could launch our COVID vaccine quickly was due to forthcoming grants, permission, encouragement to industries and considerably reduced licensing raj. We have a Drug Controller who responds even after office hours".

On the launch of the Covid vaccine Novavax, Poonawalla said, "Unless we get a license to launch Novavax, we can't launch it. The parent American company has some issues with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), those should be cleared by the end of October."

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He further said there are efforts to get the license before the parent company, but it's an uphill task.

Covid vaccine from US major Novavax may get a nod from the Indian drug regulator even before the vaccine is approved in the US.

The company and its partner Serum Institute of India (SII) have, on August 5, applied for an emergency use authorisation with the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) and regulatory bodies in Indonesia and the Philippines.

India has said any vaccine, which has approval from stringent regulatory bodies like the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA), the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in the UK, and other regulators would be approved for use.