Syringe makers ramp up production, fear demand may soon outstrip supply

The Centre is looking to procure around 1 billion syringes between September and December to support the Covid-19 vaccination drive

With vaccine production picking up, the demand for syringes has shot through the roof. Leading syringe maker Hindustan Syringes & Medical Devices (HMD) feels demand may soon outstrip supply.
 

For instance, the Serum Institute of India is now manufacturing 150 million doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca-developed Covishield vaccine in a month. In comparison, HMD makes 50 million auto-disable (AD) syringes monthly.
 

AD syringes are designed to prevent reuse of non-sterile syringes, and are used primarily by governments and global non-profit organisations for vaccination drives.
 

Syringe manufacturers are ramping up.
 

Rajiv Nath, chairman and managing director of HMD, tells Business Standard that