Syringe makers expect export of items with low demand in India to continue

Industry estimates India has stockpile to last about a month for Covid-19 vaccination

As India restricts exports of syringes and needles in the wake of rising demand for Covid-19 vaccinations, the industry expects that syringes for children vaccination, insulin and even specific Covid-19 vaccination needles which do not have demand in India will be allowed exports.

The decision from the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) came on Monday whereby India put curbs on outbound shipments of syringes and needles. “The export of syringes with or without needles...has been put under the restricted category with immediate effect,” the notification said. This implies that an exporter has to seek a license or government permission for the shipments.

The industry says that they have been seeking clarity from the government for future demand since October last year. The government too has placed bulk orders in the last few months. For example, one of India’s largest syringe maker Hindustan Syringes and Medical Devices (HMD) said last week that the company has got fresh orders of 132.5 million pieces from the Centre. It has already supplied 471.35 million syringes to the Government of India by September.

However, industry sources reveal that at an enhanced pace of vaccination, the demand for syringes has outpaced production. “India is sitting on an inventory of at best a month to take care of its Covid19 vaccination. Thus the government has put curbs to ensure it keeps a tab on outbound shipments,” said an industry source who did not wish to be named.

This could not be independently verified from the Health Ministry.

Last fiscal India exported syringes worth $45 million or so, and between April to July this year, the country has exported $17.37 million worth syringes already.

Speaking to Business Standard, Rajiv Nath, chairman and managing director of HMD said that vaccine availability in India now surpasses production rate of auto-disable (AD) syringes and buffer stocks to stockpile were inadequately created.

Sample this: Serum Institute of India (SII) plans to produce 200 million doses of Covishield (the AstraZeneca vaccine) a month from October. Compared to this, HMD makes 90 million AD syringes a month.

Nath, however, says that since this is not a complete ban, but restrictions on exports, one can expect that the government would allow shipments for children vaccination in several countries including African nations etc, allow exports of insulin syringes, and also for specific Covid19 syringes.

“Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine is given using a 0.3 ml AD syringe. This has no use in India. Some manufacturers supply this to the global agencies. Exports of these could continue,” Nath felt.