Bengaluru: Developing India's anti-Covid vaccine, Covaxin, in a short span of just ten months was an enormous challenge that the Bharat Biotech successfully completed.
Addressing a session on India’s vaccine leadership at the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2021 on Thursday, Bharat Biotech Director, Dr. V Krishna Mohan said there were no vaccines when Covid-19 infections hit India and the world. "This was a daunting challenge for the pharma sector and the prospective vaccine makers. We were given just 10 months to develop a vaccine to fight the infection but we could succeed in developing Covaxin swiftly at a level within these few months,” Dr. Mohan said.
He further said the government of India took the right steps at that juncture and the Biotechnology ministry woke up to the reality. "There were no such past precedents and it seems impossible to make a vaccine in such a short period," he added.
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Dr. Mohan said the company chalked out a plan to make and develop a Covid vaccine in India adding that it is difficult to quantify the hard work that went into the making of the vaccine. However, he said the company did not compromise on the quality or efficacy of the vaccine at any point.
He said Bharat Biotech was successful in releasing Covaxin in a record time and helped save lives of crores of fellow Indians.
He applauded the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for positively changing its style of functioning in the last decade. The Government of India is extending grants of Rs 50 lakh to Rs 50 crore to individual pharma companies for the development of vaccines which has made it easier for the pharma companies to devise better development plans.
Participating in the session, Deepak Sapra, CEO, API & Services, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories said, "Covid has taught us tough lessons. With the help of our Russian partner, we could develop Sputnik V vaccines which not only helped India but also other developed countries. However, in respect of vaccine development, it is a long way to go for India and Indian pharma companies.”
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Senior Vice-President of Aurobindo Pharma Divya Bizwan said there was no dearth of talent in India. But, there is hardly any recognition for talents in pharma companies. Vaccine makers must recognize this need and be more encouraging to the pool of talent that the Indian pharma sector has.
Atin Tomar, CEO of Yapan Bio, also participated in the session. The session was moderated by Dr. Mahesh Balghat.
