India to play vital role in equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines around the world: Pharma industry
With vaccine rollout beginning in some countries, the world ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic is looking to India for the large-scale production and supply of coronavirus vaccines as it enters 2021. As the pandemic hit the world in 2020, Indian pharma industry rose to the occasion and was able to manufacture and maintain supply chains even during the lockout period, and exported medicines such as HCQ and paracetamol to more than 150 countries, keeping its image of ‘Reliable Pharmacy of the World’. The world is again looking at India as a beacon of hope to manufacture and supply the huge number of vaccines needed to tackle the pandemic.
“India contributes 60 per cent of the vaccine production to the world. India is going to play a vital role in an inequitable distribution of vaccines around the world,” Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) Secretary-General Sudarshan Jain told. While Indian companies such as Zydus, Bharat Biotech, and Gennova are developing indigenous vaccines, other domestic companies are collaborating with global companies such as Serum Institute with AstraZeneca, Dr Reddys with Sputnik and Biological E with J&J, he added.
“India will also be a benchmark in vaccine distribution and will be using technology to ensure targeted and phase distribution. India has always believed that global cooperation and coordination is fundamental to meet the COVID situation,” Jain said.