At the peak of second wave when Remdesivir was selling between Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 1 lakh per vial in the black market, the leading pharmaceutical company, Zydus Cadila decided to keep the price of its brand, Remdac at Rs. 899 for a 100 mg lyophilized injection. Initially launched in August 2020 at Rs. 2,800, the drug continues to be India’s most economical among the available versions.

Explaining the reasons, Dr. Sharvil Patel, Managing Director, Cadila Healthcare Limited said, “Our efforts have been focused on making therapies accessible and affordable to people. Given the scarcity, we as a matter of principle ensured that it is sold at a minimum price band so that people from every strata of the society can access this critical drug. We ensured that it costs even lower than NPPA pricing. Currently it is at one fifth of the original cost."

Patel, however, raises another important point often ignored in the din. “The demand that came as a tsunami but died down in no time, leaving the pharma companies at the huge risk. We were told to make Remdesivir 30 times more than what we produce and ended up making 15 times more. Suddenly the demand receded giving an impression that it was more because of fear than actual need. It appears every time a person got COVID-19, a prescription was handed over despite the fact that the drug was not available in enough quantity because of short notice. As often witnessed in the times of crisis, this demand too was exaggerated and as a result led to indiscriminate usage due to lack of awareness. However, now we are far better prepared due to such learnings,” he told the audience while speaking at the virtual event, ‘ET Prime Talk: Redefining Indian pharma: through the lens of young leaders’.

Flagging the issue of sudden rush to produce more and its side effects, he added that it has been a stressful effort for the company to produce so much in such a short duration. “The 20-30% of our workforce was affected by COVID-19 wave and we had to triple the production or even more. We worked round the clock to ensure targets are met but it has also raised the need for stockpiling being critical in such cases. Important thing is that we have new learnings and now are better prepared.”

Patel also dispels the notion that quick approvals to clinical trials for vaccines and drugs compromised safety. “The whole question about the trials being approved too fast or rules made simpler appear unfounded. The companies I am sure have treated these trials at par with regular processes. The safety surely hasn’t been compromised. There was a time when we were the proponents of clinical trials in India but now I feel the trials can be done faster abroad. We need to create the ecosystem with involvement of all stakeholders. A handful of pharma companies cannot do everything.”

Zydus has sought permission from the Drug Controller General of India to undertake phase 1/3 human clinical trials of its novel monoclonal antibody cocktail, ZRC-3308 to treat COVID-19 infection. In this backdrop, Patel bets big on the antibody cocktails. “Many repurposed drugs have safety aspects taken care of but the investigational drugs too have been subjected to checks. With more discoveries especially therapeutic drugs which have shown greater capability to fight. We need stronger drugs, like in HIV we need cocktails. Future will hold the cocktail of antivirals,” he opines.

On the COVID-19 vaccine front, Zydus has recently completed its Phase-3 clinical trial on 28,000 participants for three-dose vaccine against SARS Cov2. The company is currently carrying out trials on children aged between 12-18 years. It has also signed an agreement with Taiwanese company, TLC to market its black fungus drug, Liposomal Amphotericin B in India.

Laying out the future roadmap of his company, Patel mentions, “The true vision for the next 15-20 years is to be a specialty business focusing on drug discovery for both Indian and global markets. In a promoter-managed business we have both a long-term vision and the core business values that the company has been founded with. This is extremely important for the business to grow and to take planned risks.”