Karnataka Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar on Thursday interacted with Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Director Govindan Rangarajan to seek premier science institute's support in tackling the second wave of the COVID-19 across the state.
According to the professor, various researches are being carried out by the scientists at IISc which include designing a more efficient oxygen concentrator and also a vaccine for COVID-19 that can be stored at room temperature upto 30 degree Celsius.
He informed that IISc has developed an oxygen concentrator of 10 LPM capacity which is being tested for its clinical validation at Bangalore Medical College, as per an official release.
Professor Rangarajan said that the results have been promising and claimed that the oxygen output is about 90 per cent and hence more efficient compared to the Chinese concentrators whose output is about 40-50 per cent.
He has sought the support of the health minister to expedite the process of clinical validation and also help in obtaining regulatory approval from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) for its emergency use.
Dr Sudhakar has assured all necessary support from the government and said he will take up the matter immediately with Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) Vice-Chancellor and concerned Union Ministers.
"As for the COVID-19 vaccine, Rangarajan apprised the minister about the ongoing efforts. The vaccine being developed by IISc is promising as the results show a better neutralising effect than the existing vaccines. This vaccine which is yet to begin the human trial process could be a big breakthrough in India's battle against pandemic as the vaccine can be stored in room temperatures up to 30," read the release.
From a public health point of view, this is a huge advantage as it enables the government to scale up the distribution of vaccines in a much faster and easier way, stated the professor.
The health minister has also sought help from the institute in developing an audit mechanism for oxygen generation plants and finding ways for optimal utilisation of oxygen and minimise wastage at both refilling/bottling units and at hospitals.
