New Delhi| The Delhi High Court on Tuesday said that central government officials are living in ivory towers and are not aware of the actual status of the Covid-19 epidemic. A bench of Justices Manmohan and Justice Naveen Chawla pulled up the Center for not being aware of the ground reality related to the ongoing epidemic. The epidemic has killed many people.
The court said that the government should be more prompt in taking decisions, especially in collaboration with Panacea Biotech with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) for the creation of the Sputnik v vaccine, which should be considered as an opportunity.
The court insisted that the government could receive millions of vaccines and this was a window for that opportunity. Emphasizing the usefulness of vaccines to fight the epidemic, the court said that the center is reprimanded by the courts every day, yet it is not awake.
The bench said: “God bless this country. In such cases, instructions have to be taken from the highest authorities, and that too within 30 minutes.”
The court’s comments came during the hearing of a petition by Delhi-based Panacea Biotech, seeking to modify the July 2020 order.
In a new application, the firm sought to issue the Arbitral Award citing the need for funding, as it has already produced test batches of Sputnik V vaccine in collaboration with RDIF and continues the process of manufacturing scale-up batches is.
The company, represented by senior advocate Sandeep Sethi, said, if the amount provided is not released, the entire process of manufacturing vaccines at the fastest speed could derail and delay which would be in the larger interest of humanity Will not happen.
The bench cited the acute shortage of vaccines in India and emphasized that Panacea Biotech’s collaboration with RDIF provides an opportunity for India to ensure that manufactured vaccines are sold in India.
The court also issued notice to the Center and fixed the matter for 31 May for further hearing.
Counsel for the Center said that the production of Sputnik V was for the global supply of RDIF, and it did not benefit the country. The lawyer further said that some misleading statements were made in the petition.
To this, Sethi replied that no manufactured vaccine can be exported without the consent of the government.
