Drug shortages, stable prices and a demand recovery in the US helped drive Aurobindo’s growth in Q4. Meanwhile, the company is developing a biosimilar to Roche/Novartis’s multi-billion product Xolair, as predicted by Scrip earlier. Use of decentralized mode for its Phase III trials is a notable aspect

The companies announced data from their Phase II/III study in children aged 5-11 and intend to take them to regulators to expand Comirnaty's authorization; also, an expert panel advising India's drug regulator endorsed plans for a Phase III trial of a single-dose Russian vaccine, Sputnik Light, and vaccines from other Indian firms progress.

Reliance Life Sciences, part of India’s largest private sector enterprise with a growing engagement in healthcare, is progressing an early-stage COVID-19 vaccine. A top executive underscores the potential to manufacture at scale and provide the protein-based candidate at a competitive price.

Most roads led to India in 2020 when it came to deals to expand access to COVID-19 therapies, but the challenging year also saw significant private equity interest and there are expectations of more action ahead in the new year.