New Delhi: Zee News reporter Pooja Makkar on Monday (January 4) became the first female journalist to get coronavirus vaccine, Covaxin, in India. Covaxin is the indigenous vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech against COVID-19 in collaboration with ICMR.


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Pooja Makkar got vaccinated at AIIMS, Delhi today in the afternoon at 2 pm after the requisite tests. She remained under observation and shared her experience later. The Zee News reporter, who is a health reporter, has extensively reported about the COVID-19 pandemic and its fallout besides keeping a tab on the vaccines being developed in the country to tackle this deadly virus. 


Talking about her experience, Pooja said that after 5.30 hours she has not felt any complication, adding that she decided to undergo the vaccination as "it was necessary to instill confidence among common people that the vaccine is fully safe."



When asked about any physical or internal impact post-vaccination, she bravely stated in front of the camera that she is not having any problem so far.


Pooja has been given a sheet to fulfill the points asked about her experience. She has also been provided with a helpline number to contact AIIMS in case she confronted any problem in the coming days.


After 28 days, she will get another shot of Covaxin as this needed twice to remain safe against the deadly pandemic.  Pooja remained on the frontline while covering all aspects related to the deadly virus.


Notably, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has recently provided emergency use approval of the two coronavirus vaccines. 


Covaxin, the indigenous vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech against COVID-19 in collaboration with ICMR, is 200 percent safe, the company`s Chairman and Managing Director Dr Krishna Ella told ANI. He further said that it has shown less than 10 percent adverse reaction in trials so far. 


Dr Ella's remarks came a day after DGCI granted permission for the restricted emergency use of Covaxin. The indigenous vaccine has been developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) - National Institute of Virology (NIV).


In a release earlier, Bharat Biotech had earlier said that Covaxin is a highly purified and inactivated two-dose SARS-CoV2 vaccine, manufactured in a vero cell manufacturing platform with an excellent safety track record of more than 300 million doses.


Earlier on Sunday, COVID-19 vaccines of Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech were granted permission for restricted use in an emergency situation by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI).