An expert panel of India's central drug authority on Wednesday recommended granting regular market approval to Covid vaccines Covishield and Covaxin, which are currently only authorised for emergency use in the country, subject to certain conditions, official sources said.

Pharma companies Serum Institute of India (SII) and Bharat Biotech had submitted applications to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) seeking regular market authorisation for their respective Covid-19 vaccines Covishield and Covaxin. Prakash Kumar Singh, director (government and regulatory affairs) at SII, had submitted an application to the DCGI on October 25 on this matter.