China to supply more Japanese Encephalitis vaccine to India

The issue figured in the talks between Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda and his Chinese counterpart Li Bin during their talks here Friday.

Indian officials had said China had earlier refused to supply more vaccines to India, than what it is being supplied, citing capacity constraints and commitments to other countries.

An Indian delegation earlier visited China to discuss the problem.

Nadda took up the issue with the Chinese leader on the sidelines of Partnership in Population and Development (PPD, an intergovernmental organisation to promote South South cooperation, Indian officials told PTI.

Concerns were raised in India following reports of over 500 deaths from JE in Assam.

Officials said India at present source 66 million doses of JE vaccine from China and made a case for an additional requirement of 16 million doses for the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Japanese Encephalitis.

Nadda also made a strong case of China importing variety of vaccines from India, which has become a global leader in manufacturing varieties of vaccines.

India has been pressuring China to increase the scope of pharmaceuticals along with IT to offset the trade deficit which touched about USD 38 billion in recent years.

The trade imbalance is expected to figure prominently during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to China likely to take place in May this year.

Though India itself is a major producer of vaccines, it is dependent on China for raw materials used in pharmaceuticals.