As per report the central government has lifted ban on export of non-surgical and non-medical masks to the foreign countries. However, according to media reports, export of all the medical and surgical masks will remain prohibited.The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), Ministry of Commerce and industry, in a notification on saturday amended its earlier order by allowing the export of non-medical, non-surgical masks made up of cotton, silk, wool, and knitted. "All other masks falling under ITCHS code, including the HS codes, would continue to remain prohibited for the exports". Earlier on march 19, as coronavirus cases started to surge in india, resulting in crisis of masks in the country, the Centre had banned exports of all types of masks to foreign countries.
The government also also banned export of sanitisers. Meanwhile, the delhi Customs recently intercepted over 5 lakh masks, including raw material, to make masks which was being smuggled to China. With several countries across the globe reeling from the virus outbreak, interest in remdesivir has been high as there are currently no approved treatments or vaccines for Covid-19, the respiratory illness caused by the new coronavirus. Gilead last week received the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's emergency use authorization for using remdesivir as a treatment against Covid-19, after the drugmaker provided data showing the drug had helped Covid-19 patients.
Gilead also said on tuesday it was negotiating long-term licenses with several generic drugmakers in india and pakistan to produce remdesivir for developing countries and that it would provide technology to aid the production. One of Bangladesh's largest drugmakers, Beximco Pharmaceuticals, will start remdesivir production this month. Remdesivir was previously available only for patients enrolled in clinical trials or those cleared to get the drug under expanded use and compassionate use programs. Gilead said it was working to build a consortium of manufacturing partners to help maximize global supply of the drug, which requires scarce raw materials and specialized manufacturing capabilities with limited global capacity.
