Hyderabad to have vaccine testing laboratory in a month: Kishan Reddy

Hyderabad: Union minister of state for home G. Kishan Reddy on Saturday said the vaccine testing laboratory in Hyderabad would be ready in a month and would commence operations at the National Institute of Animal Biotechnology.

Kishan Reddy said the Centre had sanctioned funds from the PM Cares Fund for setting up the laboratory in the city. "I thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for sanctioning funds for setting up a vaccine testing lab in Hyderabad. It is a big step forward towards comprehensive development of the pharma sector in Hyderabad, which will also boost production of Covid-19 vaccines," the minister said in a Tweet.

“Considering the fact that the city of Hyderabad is home to many big pharma companies, Covid-19 vaccine production companies and R&D institutions, the setting up of a new vaccine testing laboratory in Hyderabad is a big step forward towards the comprehensive development of this sector which will also boost the production of Covid-19 vaccines,” Kishan Reddy.

India currently has two vaccine-testing laboratories— the Central Drug Laboratory at Kasauli and National Institute of Biologicals at Noida.

The Telangana government had earlier made repeated requests to the Centre to set up the vaccine testing lab in Hyderabad. Industries minister K. T. Rama Rao requested the Centre on three occasions in this regard.

The most recent request was made on June 20. In a letter to Union health minister Harsh Vardhan, Rama Rao said Hyderabad had emerged as the vaccine capital of the world, and companies were sending every batch of vaccines for testing to the national vaccine testing centre in Kasauli leading to loss of 45 days of valuable time.

"I assure you that the state government will extend all support for setting up the vaccine centre on a fast track," Rao said.