AHMEDABAD: The second wave of Covid-19 in Gujarat was all about queues – right from getting tested to finding an ambulance to getting a bed.
But two things got added in the mix very soon – the relatives scurried for essential drugs along with oxygen for their relatives admitted in hospitals.
Thus, when the announcements were made for remdesivir by a few hospitals, hundreds turned up in hope to get a shot at faster recovery.
Learning from the experiences of the first and second wave, the state-based manufacturers are bracing up for the possible third wave later this year with increasing capacity and launch of new drugs.
According to the figures provided by Federation of Gujarat State Chemists and Druggists’ Association (FGSCDA), at the Covid-19 peak in April, Gujarat required about 1 lakh strips of azithromycin, 70,000 strips of FabiFlu, and 30,000 strips of ivermectin.
“During the second wave of the pandemic, we acted swiftly and scaled up our production capabilities for manufacturing and supplying FabiFlu (favipiravir), to meet the demand,” said a spokesperson of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Limited.
The pharma major manufactures active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) for favipiravir at its plant in Ankleshwar, Gujarat.
The formulation (tablets) is made at the company’s plant in Baddi, Himachal Pradesh.
After having received encouraging response from institutions for its antiviral drug Virafin, Zydus Cadila plans to scale up its production.
Being a biological drug, Virafin takes 45 days to manufacture one batch.
About 28,000 to 30,000 doses of Virafin were supplied in May.