Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that India should help other countries needing hydroxychloroquine. He said that the country should not opt for a blanket export ban. This is after ensuring that there will be no deficiency for demand and buffer stock in India itself.
A meeting was held where the decision to ramp up the production of the drug and make it available for countries requesting its supply was taken. This is after officials pitched for an export ban. Modi asked for statistics on India’s future projected consumption in the worst case scenario.
The projection accounts for use by patients, close contacts and healthcare contacts. This is what has been currently recommended in keeping up with the production capacity. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he wanted to seize this opportunity for India and the world. According to a source present in the meeting, PM Modi said,” This is an important moment where India can save lives and we cannot let it go.”
The Prime Minister has been known to track the emerging research on COVID-19. After reading about hydroxychloroquine, he called some of the heads of pharma companies to inquire about India’s production capacity.
Coming from Gujarat, the PM’s knowledge and understanding of the pharmaceutical industry proved handy and requested companies to ramp up production. Sources said that this was before President Donald Trump spoke of the drug to India.
