The members of the Save Children Movement of Tamil Nadu will hold a human chain demonstration on the Children's Day, November 14, in protest against the State Government for not taking up with the Central Government to restart the production of vaccines in the three public sector units and demanding restarting of the state's National Immunization Programme in rural areas.

The representatives of the Movement will meet the Governor on the 17th of this Month and make a representation to the Union Government demanding reconsideration of the Union Health Ministry's order of closing down the vaccine units, Dr Rex Sargunam, convener of the Movement told Pharmabiz. He added that the Chief Minister and the health minister did neither reply nor showed any interest to the organisation's request to meeting them.

Earlier in January this year, the Union Health Ministry had suspended the manufacturing licenses of BCG Lab, Chennai, Pasteur Institute of India, Coonoor and Central Research Institute, Kasuali, finding non-compliance of GMP standards. These Institutes contributed to 60 per cent to 70 per cent of the country's primary vaccine requirements against many diseases including polio, measles and childhood tuberculosis. Vaccines for rabies, typhoid and snakebites too were produced in these units. The BCG Lab in Chennai was an exclusive maker of the anti-tuberculosis Bacillus Calmette-Guerin vaccine (BCG Vaccine) for the last sixty years. The hundred years old PII was manufacturing DPT vaccines, Vero-cell-derived rabies vaccines and tissue culture anti-rabies vaccines.

The health ministry had constituted and expert committee headed by the DCGI to visit these units and assess the existing infrastructure facilities available with these centres and explore feasibilities of conversion of them into testing and training units.

The panel had visited all the three plants in the past and in three Months it was expected to submit its report. A decision with regard to the operation of the Units would be taken then. The Union Health Minister Ambumony Ramdoss has categorically remarked that the Centre is now engaged in the task of bringing up the Rs 800 crore comprehensive vaccine park in Chengalpattu near Chennai and the production of all vaccines would commence there with in 24 months.