India readying coronavirus vaccine delivery system using digitised network: PM Modi

India is at the forefront of vaccine development for Covid-19 with some of the vaccines in advanced stages, the Prime Minister said on Monday. Narendra Modi said also India was putting in place a well-established vaccine delivery system, through a digitised network along with the digital health ID, for the immunisation of citizens. The PM was addressing the Grand Challenges Annual Meeting 2020 through a video link which was attended by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, policymakers and scientific le

“Our population is four times that of the USA and many of our states are as populated as nations in Europe and Asia. But with a people-powered and people-driven approach, India has kept its Covid-19 death rate very low. Today we are seeing a decline in the number of cases per day and the growth rate of cases. India has one of the highest recovery rates of 88%. This happened because India was one of the first countries to adopt a flexible lockdown when total cases were just a few hundred, one of  ..

The PM said beyond Covid-19, India was now known for proven capacity to produce vaccines and medicines at low cost. “More than 60% vaccines of global immunisation are manufactured in India. We included indigenous rotavirus vaccine in Indradhanush immunisation programme. This is a successful example for a strong partnership for long-lasting results. The Gates Foundation has been part of these efforts,” Modi said.

The digital health ID that the PM was referring to was a project announced by Modi on August 15, under which every Indian would be given a unique ID that would work like his or her health account, and store that individual’s medical records. Speaking earlier in the day at the centenary convention of University of Mysore, the PM said the pace and ambit of reforms in various sectors for boosting growth had increased in the last six to seven months for helping crores of youths in the country and bu ..