Amid the general rise in cases globally, the restrictions introduced by the US Government concerning the raw materials required for vaccine manufacture has led to increasing alarm in India.
With the COVID cases witnessing an alarming and record-breaking rise in figures in India, the CEO of the Serum Institute of India (SII) – Mr Adar Poonawala had stated earlier that, the success of global vaccination efforts will rely on sharing of critical materials required for the synthesising the COVID – 19 vaccines.
However, the US had adopted the “Defense Production Act” in February 2021 for vaccine production in the USA itself. This led to severe restrictions on the export of raw material for the manufacture of the vaccines for COVID – 19. This had a ripple effect on countries that relied on Indian vaccine manufacturers.
However on Monday, 26 April 2021, US President Joe Biden and Vice – President Kamala Harris have assured India that the US will support India through the pandemic with the President, posting a tweet stating, “Just as India sent assistance to the United States as our hospitals were strained early in the pandemic, we are determined to help India in its time of need”.
As an affirmative measure, the US National Security Advisor – Jake Sullivan, spoke to his Indian counterpart – Ajit Doval, to identify critical equipment such as PPE suits, therapeutics, ventilators, etc. and prepare for its shipment to India.
