Black Fungus: 15 lakh vials of Amphotericin-B to be available by June, says MoS Mandaviya

Black Fungus or Mucormycosis which has been declared as an epidemic in few states of India, is spreading with a 50% mortality rate. Noting the grave situation, the Minister of State for Chemical and Fertilizers, Mansukh Mandaviya announced that by June, India will have 15 lakh vials of Amphotericin- B.

Black Fungus, which is caused by exposure to mucor mold can only be treated with the anti-fungal drug- Amphotericin- B, as of now. With cases of fungal infection surging at a drastic rate, the nation faced a shortage of medicine since the mid-week of May. Union Minister Mandaviya informed that India only had six companies producing 2.5 lakh vials per month when the infection started spreading, thus the medical infrastructure was suffering to cope up with the sudden occurrence of black fungus cases. The Union Minister added that following the upsurge, under the Government's order, the production of Amphotericin- B has currently reached 4 lakh vials per month.

Procuring 15 lakh vials of Amphotericin-B

Mandaviya informed that indigenous pharmaceutical companies have already been notified to ramp up their production, and the Government will soon import 7 lakh vials of the drug. 

He said, "We have given license to five more companies for the production of Amphotericin- B, and very soon the production of the medicine will reach 8 lakh vials monthly in the country."

Observing the latest development, Mansukh Mandaviya announced that 15-16 lakh vials of the anti-fungal drug will soon be available in the country. The Union Minister was affirmative that with increased production and timely availability of the anti-fungal drug, Black Fungus a post COVID complication will soon be resolved by the Medical Fraternity.

There has also been a development in the distribution of the drugs, as the Government of India allocated an additional 19,420 vials to the States and UTs on Tuesday. Lastly, 23,680 vials of Amphotericin- B were allocated to the States and UTs on May 21. It has been made mandatory for all the states to report confirmed and suspected cases of Black Fungus to the Integrated Disease Surveillance Program (IDSP). Mucormycosis is now a ''notifiable' disease under the Epidemic Disaster Act.

(Source- ANI)