Bill Gates said Indian pharmaceutical industry could produce COVID-19 vaccines for the world (File)
New Delhi:
The Indian pharmaceutical industry will be able to produce COVID-19 vaccines not only for the country but also for the world, according to Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates.
Many “very important things have been done” in India and its pharmaceutical industry is doing work “to help the coronavirus vaccine build on other great capacities they have used for other diseases”, a said the co-chair and trustee of the bill. and the Melinda Gates Foundation.
Speaking in a documentary – COVID-19: India’s war on the virus – to be broadcast on Discovery Plus this Thursday evening, Bill Gates said that India was also facing a huge challenge due to the health crisis due to its gigantic size and its urban centers with a lot of population density.
Commenting on the strength of the Indian pharmaceutical industry, he said, “India has a lot of capacity there – with the drug and vaccine companies that are huge suppliers around the world. You know, more vaccines are made in India than anywhere else – starting with the Serum Institute, it’s the largest. “
He added: “But (there is also) Bio E, Bharat (Biotech), many others. They are working to help make the coronavirus vaccine, building on other great capabilities that they have used for other illnesses. “
Stating that India has joined the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), which is a group working globally to build vaccine platforms, Mr. Gates said: “I am delighted that the pharmaceutical industry there -bas can produce not only for India but also for the whole world. (That’s) What we need to reduce deaths and make sure we are immune is how we end epidemic. “
Gates said the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is also a “government partner, particularly with the biotechnology department, the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) and the office of the chief scientific adviser providing advice and help to operate these tools. “
Commenting on the deadly virus that crosses India’s borders in the documentary that was filmed during the lockdown, he said: “India is still in the early stages, but there are a lot of very important things that have been made.
“It is a huge challenge with India because you have a gigantic country. You have your urban centers with a lot of density – and therefore that – pushes the spread. You have people who move.”
However, he added: “Yet people are stepping up … Looking at how we are reducing the spread while trying not to reduce the availability of food, the equipment that people need.”
Emphasizing the role of the Gates Foundation, he said that it “has worked for the Indian government on health issues such as the introduction of new vaccines over the past decade; and therefore when COVID-19 arrived, we intervened and said you know where the gaps are, we funded detection and isolation work. “
“We have been particularly active in the UP and Bihar, where we have provided health services in the past.”
The foundation is also working with the personnel and training department to take their online training platforms and “is now using this advice to help its front line health workers,” said Bill Gates.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
