There was a time when India had to wait for decades for procuring vaccines from abroad. And it is indeed true that India took more than 50 years to defeat polio when the disease could have been eradicated much earlier, if the West had shown urgency in supplying the vaccine. They kept profits at the forefront of their mind while the vaccination drive moved at a snail’s pace.
However, the table has turned for India as it is not dependent on western countries for vaccines anymore. Its vaccine policy has now begun receiving applause from all over the world.
WEF hails India for its vaccine policy
In what can be seen as an exceptional and proud moment for India, leaders at the World Economic Forum hailed India for ramping up its Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing at the right time. It praised India for being selfless and ensuring supplies to the rest of the world. It not only appreciated the Indian model but also asked everyone else to follow it to ensure vaccine equity and wider inoculation.
India also ensured the world that it will continue its determination to become the global vaccine capital and is now capable to ensure adequate supply to other nations.
Jeremy Farrar, Director at Welcome Trust, said “India deserves huge credit for expanding its vaccine manufacturing capacity.” Seth F Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, said “commitments and plans were in place to ensure wider inoculation globally when the vaccines first got developed, but then some roadblocks came in the form of nationalism and export bans.”
Speaking in the same panel, NITI Aayog CEO Shri Amitabh Kant said, “When the second wave hit India, and it was a disastrous wave, it was very important to take care of our huge population and at that time we had only two, vaccine manufacturers.”
“Now, we have ten manufacturers, 14 other vaccines are in various stages of development and we are now determined to become the vaccine capital of the world. We also believe that no Indian is safe till the time everyone else in the world is safe and therefore we will ensure that we supply the vaccines to everyone and wherever they are required,” he said.
India’s explicit vaccine policy
Earlier as reported by TFI in December 2021, Union Health Minister Mansukh Laxmanbhai Mandaviya informed the parliament that India and its vaccine industry had supplied 70 per cent of global vaccines up until then.
Read more: From waiting for decades for vaccines to supplying 70% of global vaccines, India has come a long way
The minister had said, “I am proud of our vaccine industry that supplies 70 percent of the global requirement of vaccines, but you have to understand that this research was done in our (Modi government’s) time. ZyCoV-D and Covaxin are fully developed in India and Covishield are being manufactured in India through technology transfer.”
However, the attitude of the Western countries and big pharms was not changed.
Thus, the recent praise of the Indian vaccine policy comes to a huge satisfaction as it proves that the world has now begun acknowledging India’s contribution to the world’s fight against Covid.