India's role in coronavirus vaccine production critical in combating pandemic: Bill Gates

Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates has said India's willingness to play a "big role" in manufacturing COVID-19 vaccine and allow supplies to other developing countries will be critical in combating the coronavirus pandemic on a global scale. "India's willingness to play a big role in manufacturing and to allow some of those vaccines to go to other developing countries will be an absolutely critical part of that," said Gates.

He stated that the world is looking at India for mass level production of the coronavirus vaccine once it is rolled out. "Obviously, all of us want to get a vaccine out in India as fast as we can, once we know that it's very effective and very safe, and so the plans are coming into focus that sometime next year, it's very likely that roll-out will take place and take place in fairly big volume," he said in an interview to PTI.

Gates called the COVID-19 crisis the "next biggest thing" the world has faced after the World War. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has been involved in global efforts to contain COVID-19 pandemic. In India, the foundation has partnered with Serum Institute to ramp up the manufacturing and delivery of coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, Serum Institute chief Adar Poonawalla has alerted the world that there won't be enough vaccines to combat the novel coronavirus for everyone in the world till 2024. Poonawalla further went on to state that it will take four to five years "until everyone gets the vaccine on this planet".

Also read: COVID-19 pandemic has taken global health progress back by 25 years: Gates Foundation

Also read: Will take 4-5 years till everyone on planet gets coronavirus vaccine: Adar Poonawalla