NEW DELHI: The Indian embassy in South Korea and diagnostic kit making company M/s Humasis Co Ltd Korea signed an agreement on Monday for supply of 500,000 covid-19 test kits, expected to help in early detection of the disease.
M/s Humasis will deliver the kits to the Indian Council of Medical Research in four lots starting 30 April, a statement from the Indian embassy in Seoul said.
“M/s Humasis Ltd., whose factory is located in Gyeongi-do (near Seoul), is sourcing raw materials for production of these diagnostic testing kits from India. This collaboration forms an important part of efforts to augment India’s testing capacity in the battle against the covid-19 pandemic,” according to the statement.
South Korea is one of the major sources of testing kits for India – the anti-body test kits as well as RT-PCR or Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction test kits – for the detection of the novel coronavirus disease. According to the embassy statement, India has sourced around 450,000 test kits from South Korea so far.
“This cooperation is in keeping with the Special Strategic Partnership between India and RoK (Republic of Korea) and the shared commitment of our leaders to pursuing a people-first approach. This is also in keeping with the assurance given by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and RoK President Moon Jae-in that the two countries will continue to consult and support each other and share experiences in the common fight against covid-19,” the statement added.
Over the weekend, another South Korean diagnostic kit manufacturing company SD Biosensor started manufacturing rapid antibody test kits in its Manesar plant after getting the necessary go-ahead from the Indian Council of Medical Research and from the Drug Controller General of India.
A senior government official said Chinese companies too are expected to send more covid-19-related medical supplies to India over the next one week. Requests for 20 flights between 21 April and 27 April have been placed with the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the official said.
Over the last two weeks, some 24 flights have flown from Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Xi’an and Hong Kong to India, carrying 390 tonnes of medical supplies. These include RT-PCR test kits, rapid antibody tests, thermometers as well as personal protection equipment.
According to the Indian foreign ministry, the major consignees were Imperial Life Sciences, HLL, Matrix Labs, Invex Healthcare, Max and companies of the Reliance, Tata, Adani group besides the state governments of Karnataka, Assam, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan.
The consignments already in from China included 650,000 testing kits received in two cargo flights last week.
