New Delhi: After an interaction with vaccine manufacturers with Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, Shri Pankaj Patel who heads Zydus Cadila company (Cadila Healthcare) based in Gujarat said the biggest factor behind development of his company’s DNA vaccine against Covid-19 is Prime Minister Narendrabhai Modi.

Patel whose pharma company has developed world’s first COVID-19 vaccine that uses circular strands of DNA to prime the immune system against the virus SARS-CoV-2 said, ‘Our scientists and all co-workers developed this DNA vaccine and the biggest factor behind that has been the Prime Minister. He encouraged us a lot from the start and assured us that the Government of India is with you and it will support you whenever you face any difficulty. And due to that only we have been able to develop this vaccine.’

PM Modi has been the biggest factor behind development of world's first DNA vaccine against Covid: Pankaj Patel of Zydus Cadila https://t.co/To6FTXEBqh pic.twitter.com/KHDxleo2WY

— DeshGujarat (@DeshGujarat) October 23, 2021

Patel further said, ‘we are proud of the fact and thankful to the Prime Minister that he mentioned this vaccine in the United Nations. It is a matter of proud for India’s scientists, for us and for all people of India. And we are hopeful that this new chapter of innovation that has started in India will go ahead further speedily and India will emerge as an innovative country.’

ZyCoV-D, which is administered into the skin without an injection, has been found to be 67% protective against symptomatic COVID-19 in clinical trials. Prime Minister Modi had personally visited Zydus facility in Ahmedabad during the initial days of vaccine development. DeshGujarat

PM interacts with domestic vaccine manufacturers

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi interacted with the domestic vaccine manufacturers at Lok Kalyan Marg today.

Prime Minister praised the efforts of the vaccine manufacturers, which has resulted in the country crossing the milestone of 100 crore vaccinations, and said that they have played a big role in the success story of India. He appreciated their hard work and confidence given by them during the pandemic.

Prime Minister exhorted that the country needs to institutionalise the best practises learnt during the last one and a half years, and said that this is an opportunity to modify our practises, in tune with the global standards. He said that the entire world is looking up to India, in the backdrop of the success of the vaccination drive. He also said that the vaccine manufacturers should continuously work together to be ready to face future challenges.

The domestic vaccine manufacturers appreciated the vision and dynamic leadership of the Prime Minister in providing continuous guidance and support towards the development of the vaccines. They also praised the never before seen collaboration between government and industry, and applauded the regulatory reforms, simplified procedures, timely approvals, and forthcoming and supportive nature of the government throughout this endeavour. They noted that had the country been following old norms, there would have been considerable delay and we would not have been able to reach the vaccination level that we have attained till now.

Mr. Adar Poonawala praised the regulatory reforms brought out by the government. Mr. Cyrus Poonawalla praised the leadership of the Prime Minister throughout the course of the pandemic. Dr. Krishna Ella thanked the Prime Minister for having taken Covaxin, and for the continuous support and motivation during its development. Mr. Pankaj Patel thanked the Prime Minister for talking about the DNA based vaccine in the UN General Assembly. Ms. Mahima Datla commended the vision of the Prime Minister which helped the country attain the vaccination milestone. Dr. Sanjay Singh talked about the importance of innovation and backward integration in the field of vaccine development. Mr. Satish Reddy appreciated the collaboration between government and industry throughout this endeavour. Dr. Rajesh Jain praised the continuous communication by the government throughout the pandemic.

The interaction was attended by Mr. Cyrus Poonawalla & Mr. Adar Poonawalla, Serum Institute of India; Dr. Krishna Ella & Ms. Suchitra Ella, Bharat Biotech International Ltd; Mr. Pankaj Patel & Dr. Shervil Patel, Zydus Cadila; Ms. Mahima Datla & Mr. Narender Mantela, Biological E. Ltd; Dr. Sanjay Singh & Mr Satish Ramanlal Mehta, Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Ltd; Mr. Satish Reddy & Mr. Deepak Sapra, Dr. Reddy’s Lab and Dr. Rajesh Jain & Mr. Harshit Jain, Panacea Biotec Ltd. Union Health Minister, MoS Health and MoS Chemicals & Fertilizers were also present during the interaction. PIB