New Delhi, July 30 -- The Delhi high court on Wednesday refused to stay the administration of the HPV vaccine Gardasil to 14-year-old girls under the Centre's nationwide vaccination programme, saying there appeared to be "no instant harm" in continuing the drive.

A bench of chief justice DK Upadhyaya and justice Tejas Karia said that although the HPV vaccination programme began in 2006 and concerns were later raised, including by a Parliamentary Standing Committee, over six deaths allegedly linked to the vaccine, inquiries had found that none of those deaths was attributable to HPV vaccination.

The bench added that the controversy dated to 2010 and that the Government of India and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) appeared t...