India will produce five billion vaccine doses next year, says Goyal

Goyal told the gathering at a summit that the country has been working with other nations to help them with medical supplies and equipment

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday said India plans to produce five billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines next year and keep contributing to making the world a safer place to live in.

India, the world's largest producer of vaccines, has resumed the supply of Covid-19 vaccines to other countries. It had suspended the export of vaccines in April this year to focus on inoculating its own population following a sudden spike in coronavirus infections.

Speaking at the CII Partnership Summit 2021, Goyal said India is one of the shining examples of both vaccinating her own population as well as providing vaccines to the rest of the world.

"We have been exporting in the past, we continue to export and we have offered to all the countries in the world that we will be willing to supply as many vaccines as other countries would require to ensure equitable availability at affordable prices for vaccines for all the countries in the world," he said.

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He also said that next year, India plans to produce five billion doses of vaccines.

"... we hope to contribute to making the world a safer place to live in, particularly when we are grappling with this once in a century...Covid pandemic," he added.

Goyal also told the gathering that the country has been working with other nations to help them with medical supplies and equipment, and acknowledged India too received support from many nations.

India is celebrating 75 years of independence 'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav' and will also be taking the G20 presidency in 2023.

"In both these important elements, we hope to promote partnerships, camaraderie amongst nations, fair trade and democratic institutions," he said and added that at present, the world looks at India as a trusted partner.

Further, the minister said the country is confident of increasing its non-fossil energy capacity to 500 gigawatts by 2030 and meeting 50 per cent of the energy requirement from renewable energy.

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