Waiver of vaccine patent will ensure scaling up of inoculation drive, says foreign secy

NEW DELHI: India’s proposal at the World Trade Organization for waiver of patent protections for Covid-19 vaccines is an important step for ensuring scaling up of manufacture and availability of vaccines, foreign secretary Harsh Shringla said on Friday. In a virtual address to a UN Security Council debate on international peace and security and multilateralism, Shringla said the challenges of today’s interdependent world cannot be addressed by outdated systems and a reformed Security Council is at the core of India’s call for reformed multilateralism. “This waiver will be an important step for enabling the rapid scaling up of manufacture and timely availability of affordable Covid-19 vaccines and essential medical products on a global basis.” He described 2021 as a “watershed moment” that provides a “timely opportunity to reflect on the effectiveness of the UN” in achieving its goals.