Brain Booster for UPSC & State PCS Examination (Topic: India and Vaccine Diplomacy)

Current Affairs Brain Booster for UPSC & State PCS Examination

India and Vaccine Diplomacy

India has well earned the reputation of “pharmacy of the world”. With six vaccine candidates in different stages of the trial, India is set to roll out its vaccine diplomacy even with the second largest number of COVID-19 cases.

Being a supplier of almost 60% of the vaccine around the world, India is also a global powerhouse for generic pharmaceutical drugs.
Among the six vaccines under trial in India are the homegrown Covaxin, developed by Hyderabadbased Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the state-run Indian Council of Medical Research, and Covishield jointly developed by the Oxford University and British drug-maker AstraZeneca.
India is also conducting trials for Russian Sputnik V in partnership with Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his UN General Assembly address had assured that India’s vaccine production and delivery capacity would be used to help “all humanity” fight off the crisis.
Luxembourg-based B Medical Systems, a global supplier of medical-grade refrigerators, freezers, and transport boxes, has plans to set up a production line in India as it looks forward to bolstering its cold chains.
Adarsh Poonawalla’s Serum Institute is mass-producing AstraZeneca’s vaccine.

Despite the burden of COVID-19 cases at home, India managed to send medical teams to the Maldives, Mauritius, Madagascar, Comoros, and Seychelles.
India has already been providing not only medicines but other essential supplies not only in the neighbourhood but globally. It has also organized training sessions for experts from the neighbouring countries including Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and the Maldives on vaccine-related issues.
As part of Mission Sagar-II, Indian Naval Ship Airavat delivered food aid to Sudan, South Sudan, Djibouti and Eritrea during the pandemic.
Mission Sagar-II, followed the first ‘Mission Sagar’ undertaken in May-June 2020, wherein India (INS Kesari) reached out to Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoros, and provided food aid and medicines.

It is believed that India will gift about 10 million doses to all the countries in South Asia — Afghanistan, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Maldives — as well as key countries in the extended neighbourhood such as Myanmar, Mauritius and Seychelles.
India has agreed to give Sri Lanka priority when supplying Covid vaccine to other countries.
Besides the neighbouring countries, Brazil and South Africa too have reached out to India seeking vaccines to deal with the COVID-19 crisis in their countries.
Ecuador’s ambassador to India Hector Cueva Jacome (First diplomat to participate in medical trials) along with his spouse participated in the medical trials for Bharat Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine.
Brazil is all set to become the first country in the world to receive two million doses of Covishield from India flown directly from Mumbai to Rio de Janeiro via a special flight, procured at a “special rate”.

In South East Asia, China has promised vaccines to Malaysia and the Philippines – although Cambodia, a close ally, has said it will opt for the international Covax programme.
In Dubai, UAE ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum himself volunteered to be part of the trials being conducted by China’s National Biotec Group.
Turkey, Brazil and Mexico have been separately promised millions of doses by the Chinese.
For the time being, at least in terms of pre-orders, Chinese vaccines like Sinovac and Sinopharm (together 500 million doses) are losing the race to Western vaccines like Pfizer (500 million doses) and AstraZeneca (2.5 billion doses).
As demand for the India-made COVID-19 vaccines gathers pace in foreign countries, even China seems to have grudgingly conceded that India's COVID-19 vaccines are good.
In a report in the China Communist Party's mouthpiece, experts note that India's plans to export the vaccine "could be good news for the global market given India's competitive vaccine research and production capacity" and that "India's vaccines are no less competitive than Chinese COVID-19 vaccines in both research and production capacity, considering that India has the world's largest vaccine manufacturer and lower costs in labour and facilities."