An illegal factory in Kotdwar, Uttarakhand, allegedly involved in producing fake medicines, has been sealed following a joint operation by the Uttarakhand STF and other departments.
This import duty exemption would remain in force till October 31 this year.
The government on Monday issued an advisory for rational use of Remdesivir in COVID-19 treatment, underlining that the anti-viral drug must be advised by senior faculty members directly involved in the patient's care.
Seeking to allay concerns over shortage of Remdesivir, the minister said the government held talks with pharma companies and ensured sufficient supply of the medicine for COVID-19 patients.
The current total installed capacity of the seven manufacturers of remdesivir is 38.80 lakh vials per month, the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers said in a statement.
Earlier, the district administration had issued an order that hospitals should not be asking patient's relatives to arrange the Remdesivir injection from outside, and instead, they should themselves procure it from chemists based on their requirement and use it for treatment.
Artificial shortages and brazen hawking of the drug on the streets at 15 times the normal price rule the day as the official machinery tries desperately to stamp out the parallel market, reports Sohini Das
The Union home ministry said several steps have been taken to augment the production and supply of Remdesivir injections from 38.80 lakh units per month to 74 lakh units per month by early next month, and asked the states to ensure its seamless supply and transport.
The home ministry noted that it took a number of steps to ensure adequate and uninterrupted supply of essential medical oxygen as well as life-saving drugs, including remdesivir.
'It was of no use if given early in mild and asymptomatic patients and also if administered too late'
The Bharatiya Janata Party in Maharashtra objected to the pharma executive's grilling by Mumbai police, saying the Shiv Sena-led government in the state was playing politics amid the pandemic.
The government has also given permission to 20 plants to produce the antiviral drug.
Remdesivir is considered a key anti-viral drug in the fight against Covid-19. In addition, the government has taken three steps to ensure easy access of hospitals and patients to Remdesivir.
Other decisions piled up include rationalisation of GST rate slabs, correction of inverted duty on certain items and inclusion of petroleum products.
The interim findings of the trial in which the four drugs were tested in 405 hospitals across 30 countries, covering 11,266 adults, were released on 'medRxiv', a preprint server, on Thursday. The findings are under review for publication in a medical journal.
The court directed the Union and the Maha governments to file their affidavits by April 21, pointing out the parameters followed for the regulation and distribution of Remdesivir vials.
The EUA allows for Remdesivir to be distributed in the US and administered intravenously by health care providers, as appropriate, to treat suspected or laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 in adults and children hospitalised with severe condition.
The Hyderabad-based firm will first make the drug available in high case load areas of Maharashtra and Delhi under the brand Covifor. A single dose vial is likely to cost Rs 5,000-6000.
The first consignment of 75,000 vials will reach India on Friday, it added.
Ganga Ram hospital Chairperson Dr D S Rana on Tuesday said that Remdesivir is also being considered to be dropped from COVID-19 treatment soon as there is no evidence of its effectiveness in treating COVID-19 patients.
The company said the drug will be made available across India through the group's strong distribution chain reaching out to government and private hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.
The antiviral drug may cost around Rs 55,000 for an 11-dose course, or Rs 5,000 per injection -- much less than the price of imports from Bangladesh, reports Sohini Das.
The company is set to deliver the first set of 20,000 vials in two equal lots of 10,000 each, one of which will be immediately supplied to Hyderabad, Delhi, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra, Hetero Healthcare said in a statement.
The government has come out with comprehensive guidelines for the management of COVID-19 among children in which Remdesivir has not been recommended and rational use of HRCT imaging has been suggested.
The Delhi high court on Wednesday said it appeared that the Centre wanted people to die as according to the new protocol on use of Remdesivir for Covid-19 treatment, the drug was to be given only to those on oxygen support.
The Bombay high court on Wednesday refused to issue orders for registration of a first information report against Bharatiya Janata Party MP Sujay Vikhe Patil over allegations that he had illegally procured a large consignment of Remdesivir drug for his constituency Ahmednagar to improve his political image.
Hetero has priced the injectable drug at Rs 5,400 per 100 mg vial. With More drugmakers in line to launch the drug soon, the prices may see a further erosion.
Apart from favipiravir and remdesivir, its key Covid-19 products, DRL has already launched nutraceutical products and hand sanitisers during the pandemic.
'The Centre is planning to procure five million vials of Remdesivir ahead of the third wave. What's better is that this time, the government is paying us in advance,' said a senior executive of a Mumbai-based pharma player which makes Remdesivir. Sohini Das reports.
While Lupin is working on a Remdesivir powder for inhalation, Glenmark has tied up with a Canadian Biotech firm for nitric oxide nasal spray that reduces Sars-CoV-2 viral load and thus transmission.
"We will be doomed," a bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Rekha Palli said with regard to any non-application of mind in allocation and diversion of resources and medicines.
Amid a row over Remdesivir supply in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad has said he wishes he could "stuff coronavirus in the mouth" of Bharatiya Janata Party leader Devendra Fadnavis, sparking protests by the Opposition.
Tanmay is a grandson of Devendra Fadnavis's aunt Shobatai Fadnavis, a senior BJP leader and former minister.
The move is aimed at dealing with any possible emergency situation on account of a spurt in coronavirus cases.
The White House described the development as "quite good news".
'The prime minister took a meeting recently and he asked for suggestions and ideas for a plan till 2047.'
According to the AIIMS director, there are 10-15 per cent of people who may witness severe infection and may need extra medicines like Remdesivir, oxygen or plasma. Less than five per cent of patients need to be operated on a ventilator, he informed.
I did not take up research for any award.' 'What is more important is the medicine that I have developed.' 'This helps the patient recover and the family is happy that their relative has survived and they go back to their lives.
Top officers across various ministries participate in the meeting that started at 8 pm on Saturday. The meeting is currently underway. The country is currently witnessing a second and more severe wave of the pandemic.
'This government did not have any plan for safety stocks of essential medicines.'
