Vaccine booster shots: Experts studying benefits before India forges ahead

Some experts also argue that companies sitting on big vaccine stocks are using boosters as a marketing strategy to sell more vaccines

Around this time last year, India was still working out the modalities of how to roll out its Covid vaccination drive even as some countries forged ahead to urgently inoculate their vulnerable population. Just about a month later, on January 16, the country launched what would be the world’s largest vaccination programme. And now, with more than half its adult population fully vaccinated in less than a year, the conversation has moved to booster shots, with the question being: Should a booster shot (that’s the third dose of the vaccine) be given at this point in time?

Meanwhile, nearly 60 countries