A month after UP, Kolkata and Chennai reported receiving second stage heat exposed Japanese Encephalitis vaccine, a delegation from the China National Biotech Group will visit the country shortly to settle the matter.

The Group is the sole supplier of JE vaccine in the country. After the government medical stores in several states reported receiving heat exposed vaccine, the Central government had asked the manufacturer to replace the supply.

Sources said payment for the heat-exposed vaccine had also been withheld. The delegation, which will have a discussion with all the stakeholders, will be led by company’s Manager for International Business and Co-operation Lingjiang Yang. It will also make field visits to some of the places which have been reporting constant problems with vaccine cold chain or vaccine vial monitors.

The state alone had reported receiving 16 lakh doses of the vaccine in October, which was in the second stage of heat exposure. It had conveyed to the Centre that the supply would not be used.

Apart from exposure to heat, complaints have also been received that the vaccine vial monitors (VVM) on JE vaccine tends to peel off in around 10 to 15 per cent of the stock. The VVM changes colour with the degree of exposure to heat. In the absence of VVM, it is impossible to say anything about the quality of vaccine and it has to be discarded.

Dr Pritu Dhalaria, Director of Immunisation at PATH, a voluntary organisation working with the government for JE eradication, said: “The VVMs were introduced in 2008 and were pasted manually. The company had promised to paste them in this year’s supply, but it was not done. We plan to take up this issue too.”

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