ICMR, Pfizer to work on antimicrobial resistance

New Delhi: The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Pfizer said they will set up a centre to address the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance in India.

The ‘Centre to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance’ in New Delhi will be set up as a part of the memorandum of understanding signed recently, they added.

Pfizer has provided an initial grant of Rs 6.97 crore for this initiative with a provision to scale up further as the program expands, it added.

“The Government of India recognizes the need for urgent action and hence is developing a national response mechanism to adeptly deal with the growing challenge of antimicrobial resistance,” Department of Health Research Secretary & ICMR Director General K Vijay Raghavan said.

Adopting a partnership approach with Pfizer, ICMR is engaging with relevant stakeholders to draw in diverse perspectives and support, he added.

Commenting on the development, Pfizer Ltd MD S Sridhar said: The pharmaceuticals industry must respond in full force to support the Government’s ambitious plan to combat antimicrobial resistance.”

“Pfizer recognizes the serious public health threat associated with anti-microbial resistance and we work closely with the governments and public health community to address the crisis of drug-resistant infection,” Regional President of APAC Pfizer Essential Health, Pierre Gaudreault said.

The Government of India views AMR as a key priority and in April 2017 finalized country’s National Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (NAP-AMR), the statement said.