India has clamped a ban on the use of the measles vaccine manufactured by a public sector firm following the death of four vaccinated children on Tuesday.
The incident took place in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu after they were administered the vaccine produced by that firm.
"All the state governments have been instructed to stop the use of the measles vaccine manufactured by the Indian Immunological Limited until further orders," Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss told reporters in the national capital of New Delhi on Thursday.
An order of 90 lakh units of vaccine had been placed with the company, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Dairy Development Board. It had supplied 45 lakh units in the last four months.
Samples of the vaccine had been sent to the Central Research Institute (CRI), Kasauli for further testing, Ramadoss said.
The Union Health Ministry also sent a high-level team, led by Director of National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) Shivlal, to the state to inquire into various aspects of the administration of the vaccine.
The committee, comprising members from the Indian Council of Medical Research, the National Institute of Communicable Diseases and the Directorate-General of Health Services, and the Drug Controller-General of India, would visit Tiruvallur and inquire into the quality of the vaccine, status of the cold chain, quality of diluents (substance that dilutes the strength of a solution or mixture), distribution and administration of the vaccine including the possibility of human error. Experts of the National Polio Surveillance Project of the World Health Organisation had already been deputed to Tamil Nadu to assist the State government in investigations.
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