Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Jagat Prakash Nadda on Monday virtually inaugurated the Liver Transplant Unit and commissioned a state-of-the-art Surgical Robotic System at AIIMS Bhubaneswar.
Nadda congratulated the entire team of AIIMS Bhubaneswar, describing the launch of the indigenous Tetanus and Adult Diphtheria (Td) vaccine as a momentous and historic occasion that strengthens national health security and public health infrastructure.
The Minister said the Government, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has set clear targets for self-reliance in health and pharmaceuticals. He stated that the indigenous Td vaccine launch is a concrete step toward the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat in health and medicine.
With the formal launch, the Td vaccine has been introduced for supply under the Universal Immunization Programme (UIP). The Central Research Institute will supply 55 lakh doses to UIP by April 2026, with production expected to scale up progressively in subsequent years to further strengthen the programme.
Nadda highlighted India’s global standing as the “pharmacy of the world” and a leading vaccine manufacturer. He noted that India has achieved Maturity Level 3 in the World Health Organization’s global benchmarking of regulatory systems, reflecting the robustness of its vaccine framework, with institutions like CRI playing a significant role.
The Minister recalled that historically, vaccine and drug development timelines were long — tetanus vaccine took decades globally, tuberculosis medicines nearly 30 years, and Japanese Encephalitis vaccine almost a century. In contrast, during the COVID-19 pandemic, India developed two indigenous vaccines within nine months and administered over 220 crore doses, including boosters, with digital vaccination certificates.
Nadda said under Vaccine Maitri, India supplied vaccines to nearly 100 countries, 48 of them free of cost. He noted that public sector institutions like CRI strengthened India’s capacity to serve domestic and global needs.
The Minister said CRI is the first government institute to manufacture vaccines under Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) standards, reflecting modernization of public sector vaccine units.
Nadda described UIP as the world’s largest immunization programme, providing 11 vaccines against 12 preventable diseases, with CRI making substantial contributions. He said every year approximately 2 to 2.5 crore children are born and a similar number of women become pregnant. Beneficiaries are tracked from pregnancy registration through digital platforms like U-WIN. The Government ensures expectant mothers receive five antenatal check-ups, including at least one by a specialist. Immunization and tracking continue until the child reaches 16 years, covering 27 doses.
The annual immunization cohort comprises nearly 5 crore beneficiaries, including 2.5 crore pregnant women and 2.5 crore children. Due to systematic tracking and efforts, vaccine coverage has reached nearly 99 percent, which Nadda described as a transformative shift in India’s public health landscape, with institutions like CRI playing a pivotal role.
Nadda said Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana is the world’s largest publicly funded health coverage programme, benefiting over 62 crore people. All citizens above 70 years are eligible for up to ₹5 lakh annual coverage irrespective of socio-economic criteria.
The Minister highlighted that institutional deliveries have increased from 79 percent to 89 percent, reflecting strengthened maternal health services and access to healthcare facilities.
He reiterated that such policy interventions and institutional strengthening demonstrate how sustained governance can transform public health outcomes and reinforce national health security.
Senior officials from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, representatives of State Health Departments, Dimple Kasana, Director of CRI Kasauli, public health experts and other stakeholders were present.
