India contributes nearly 60% of world’s vaccine demand: FM Nirmala Sitharaman on vaccine production

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said that India has made a remarkable contribution over the decades in vaccine production and now supplies nearly 60% of the world's demand. Notably, addressing a book launch event, the finance minister said India has a singular contribution in terms of vaccine production which is being supplied to the world, according to news agency ANI report.

The Finance Minister said, “over the decades India has, of course, made a remarkable contribution nearly 60% of all the vaccines which are used in the world are produced in India. Therefore, India has a singular contribution to the world in terms of vaccination and that which is being produced and supplied to the entire world.” In her speech, she also talked about how India contributed in providing immunity to the world, where she said, "India's DNA has this temperament to be able to build something to bring an immunity into public life into citizens and the way in which it has progressed today to the extent that we could produce a vaccine during the Covid lockdown period and that vaccine was just saved so many of our lives."

Additionally, the Finance Minister lauded the effort in the country for double vaccination of every citizen and mentioned that it is not easy to execute, stating, “vaccine has just saved so many of our lives. And today we are very clearly double dosing every citizen, it is not easy, both to produce to also execute it at that scale.” Interestingly, Sitharaman was talking at the book launch of Sajjan Singh Yadav, Additional Secretary in the Finance Ministry. The book is titled 'India's Vaccine Growth Story - From Cowpox to Vaccine Maitry'.

Union Finance Secretary T V Somanathan said the book is written in a lucid and non-technical way, with anecdotes that make it very interesting to read. Yadav has treated a very dry subject and made it interesting to read even to a layman. Somanathan further stated that the book essentially captures the "whole Government" approach, the untiring efforts of our scientists, entrepreneurs and health experts, accelerated regulatory approach and liberal financial support towards readying two India-made vaccines, according to ANI report.

(With inputs from ANI)