Indian Immunologicals holds scientific conclave on pandemic preparedness & vaccine innovation

New Delhi: Indian Immunologicals Limited in collaboration with Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India and NDDB conducted a “Conclave on Pandemic Preparedness & Vaccine Innovation” in Hyderabad.

This was a unique conclave having diverse topics for discussion such as Animal Health, Human Health, Regulatory, Resilient supply chain for pandemic preparedness, Innovation, Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare, Cell and Gene Therapy vaccines and Policy matters.

The objective of this conclave was to ideate, explore and collaborate on the learnings of the pandemic, and to build a more robust & resilient health care system. Several speakers from the national level and international level including FAO and CEPI presented. IIL planted 141 trees to make the one-day Conclave carbon neutral, which speaks volumes of IIL’s commitment to sustainability and reducing carbon footprint.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Vinod K Paul, Member-Health, NITI AAYOG informed that “One Health” approach is paramount to disease control and hence preparedness for pandemics with 100 days’ timeline will be the right way to prepare and face future pandemics.

Alka Upadhyaya, Secretary to Government of India, Dept of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India, informed that Government needs to spend more on animal health for better productivity and also better supply chain and cold chain systems to make the last mile delivery effective.

Dr Abhijit Mitra, Animal Husbandry Commissioner stressed upon vaccine security and need for pre-qualifications for animal vaccines.

Dr K Anand Kumar, Managing Director, IIL said that the company is the single largest contributor to the nation in achieving self-sufficiency in the field of vaccines. Many animal and human vaccines produced in millions by IIL have not only offered affordability but also have saved several million lives. He said that we as a society are at crossroads, faced with many issues and it is only collectively that the right path can be chosen.

Rama Shankar Sinha, Joint Secretary (Livestock Health), Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India; Dr Sanjay Shukla, Member Secretary, Central Zoo Authority, Ministry of Environment, forests and Climate change; Dr B R Gulati, Director NIVEDI and many experts from various field of healthcare, stake holders from vaccine industry, CDSCO were present in the conference.

World has witnessed Covid 19 one of the most contagious pandemics, a few years ago. Although the devastation of the pandemic is over, but it has made mankind to be resilient and fight against future pandemics.

When the nation was suffering huge losses due to several animal diseases including the economically devastating ‘Foot and Mouth disease’, when the Indian farmers had to pay huge price for vaccines during mid-seventies, it had an impact on the productivity and quality of milk. It is beyond doubt that good animal health is paramount for higher productivity and food security. Today, contribution of dairy and livestock sector to GDP is significant and it is growing every year. India is home to more than 20% of livestock worldwide.