NEW DELHI: After the deadline of August 15 for COVID-19 vaccine was issued also signalling action threat, the Indian Council of Medical Research's (ICMR) on Saturday issued a clarification.

In a statement, the ICMR said the letter sent by DG-ICMR to investigators of the clinical trial sites was "meant to cut unnecessary red tape, without bypassing any necessary process, and speed up recruitment of participants".

"Just as red tape was not allowed to become a hindrance in the fast-track approval of new indigenous testing kits or for introducing in the Indian market potential Covid-19 related drugs, the indigenous vaccine development process has also been sought to be insulated from slow file movement," the ICMR said in a statement.

"While issues raised in public domain from time-to-time by commentators are welcome, as they form an important part of feedback loop, the best of India's medical professionals and research scientists should not be second-guessed for their professionalism or adherence to the highest scientific rigour. ICMR is committed to treat the safety and interest of people of India as a topmost priority," the statement added.

The Indian Council of Medical Research on Friday wrote to select medical institutions and hospitals to fast-track clinical trial approvals for the coronavirus vaccine candidate Covaxin, being developed in collaboration with Bharat Biotech, a city-based vaccine maker, which it plans to release on August 15.

ICMR Director-General Dr Balram Bhargava has written letters to all the institutes who were a part of this clinical trials, to speed up the approvals for the vaccine after clinical trials, without any time-lapse, otherwise it will be viewed seriously.

It must be noted that no vaccine has been approved for COVID-19 till now.