April 20, 2020
India’s pharmaceutical sector, the largest provider of generic drugs globally, has been a key force in the global fight against the Coronavirus
Presently, laboratories and research institutes across the country are working on solutions that can emerge as a potential cure for the virus
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has reached out to global leaders, extending all possible help in the united fight against the pandemic
India’s R&D activities in COVID-19 span across vaccines, testing kits, genome sequencing, plasma therapy, drug therapeutics, devices, etc
India has risen to the healthcare challenges put forward by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic by ensuring the global supply of critical medicines. Among other medical provisions, the Government of India has been exporting hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug thought to be a cure for COVID-19, to 55 countries. The countries benefiting from the supply spans from Malaysia to the United States. The move comes in line with Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s outreach to global leaders, extending all possible help in the fight against the pandemic. The Indian Government has reiterated the need for a unified movement against the health, societal, and economic challenges of COVID-19.
The health epidemic has claimed more than 171,500 lives between the beginning of December 2019 and the third week of April 2020 while over 2.5 million people have so far contracted the disease in over 180 countries. With a cure believed to be at least a year away, countries around the world have enforced vast lockdowns as a measure to arrest the spread of the disease. The lockdowns have brought the movement of humans and goods to a virtual halt, which is expected to cost the global economy much more than US$1 trillion in 2020. This has also disrupted the supply of essential medical supplies. Herein, India has risen the occasion to minimise the impact of the pandemic on the economy and society.
In the face of such unprecedented challenges, India has strengthened its ties with partner nations across the scope of scientific collaborations, trade of critical commodities, and exchange of key information and resources. India’s pharmaceutical sector, the largest provider of generic drugs globally, has been a key enabler in this effort. Presently, several laboratories across the country are working on several solutions that can emerge as a potential cure for the virus. These R&D activities span across vaccines, testing kits, genome sequencing, plasma therapy, drug therapeutics, PPEs, and medical devices, among others. These researches are being done in partnership with and are funded by the Indian Government.