'Got only first dose of coronavirus vaccine, antibodies develop after 2 doses', says Anil Vij

Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij who tested positive for Covid-19 on December 5 and is hospitalized said on Sunday that he was told by doctors before being administered the first dose during the phase 3 trial of Bharat Biotech's coronavirus vaccine Covaxin that antibodies take 14 days to build in the human body after the second dose.

Vij tweeted that he had received only the first dose of the two-shot coronavirus vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech.

"Before administering Covaxin, doctors told me that antibodies will develop after 14 days of second dose... I am being treated at a civil hospital and I feel fine. It is only 14 days when I got the first shot," Vij tweeted in Hindi He also refuted a media report stating that he did not follow protocol despite being coronavirus positive.

A newspaper has published wrong and irresponsible news that I did not follow protocol despite being coronavirus positive and I continued meeting the people, Vij tweeted. "This is false. After my report came out positive, I was admitted in Civil Hospital in Ambala Cantt within half an hour," read a tweet by Vij.

"Two days after coming from Panipat, when I was informed that the MLAs there had tested positive, I got the test done in Chandigarh the same day, which turned out negative," he said in a subsequent tweet.

Vij had received the first dose of Covaxin on November 20 is admitted to the Civil Hospital Ambala Cantt.

"All those who have come in close contact to me are advised to get themselves tested for corona," the minister tweeted.

Meanwhile, Bharat Biotech said in a statement: "Covaxin clinical trials are based on a two-dose schedule, given 28 days apart. The vaccine efficacy will be determined 14 days after the second dose. COVAXIN has been designed to be efficacious when subjects receive both the doses."