India backs AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine despite South Africa halt

India said on Tuesday it had no concerns over the efficacy of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine despite South Africa putting it on hold, and ordered 10 million more doses of the shot for its own huge immunisation campaign.
 

South Africa delayed use of the vaccine after researchers found it offered minimal protection against mild-to-moderate Covid-19 disease caused by the country's dominant coronavirus variant.
 

India, with the highest number of infections after the United States, has yet to detect the South African variant and will continue to use the vaccine in an inoculation drive that has covered 6.3 million front-line workers