India will participate in the WHO's multi-country "solidarity trial" for developing potential treatments and drugs for COVID-19, apex health research body Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said on Friday.
The decision came as the country reported 2,547 cases of the coronavirus infection, including 62 deaths so far.
"ICMR will collaborate with the World Health Organization (WHO) for public health emergency 'SOLIDARITY TRIAL- An international randomised trial of additional treatments for COVID-19 in hospitalised patients'," the ICMR said in a statement.
The trial will be coordinated in India by scientist at ICMR-National AIDS Research Institute, Pune, Dr Sheela Godbole, the research body's officials said.
Earlier Head of Epidemiology and Communicable diseases at ICMR Raman R Gangakhedkar had said, "Earlier we did not do it because our numbers were so small and our contribution would have looked minuscule."
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