Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest producers of vaccines, in terms of volumes, announced the establishment of its Dr. Cyrus Poonawalla Center of Excellence in Infectious Diseases and Pandemic Preparedness, at Hyderabad on 19^th February, 2023. The announcement came in post Minister KT Rama Rao’s virtual meeting with Adar Poonawalla, CEO, SII.

This centre will be located at the Indian Institute of Public Health (IIPH-H) in Hyderabad, which is one of five institutions established by the Public Health Foundation across the country. It aims to strengthen health systems for better planning and performance and to also align multi-sectoral policies and programmes to public health objectives.

“This centre will offer a variety of services, including Public health education and outreach, Monitoring and tracking of infectious diseases, Coordination of response efforts with local healthcare providers, Provision of information and support for individuals and families affected by epidemic. Telangana is dedicated to providing its residents with a high quality of life and a bright future,” said Dr. Poonawala.

“Telangana strengthens its position as Life Sciences hub. @SerumInstIndia, the largest vaccine manufacturer, announced the establishment of Dr Cyrus Poonawalla Center of Excellence in Infectious Diseases and Pandemic Preparedness in Hyderabad,” tweeted Rama Rao, following the announcement.

SII is world’s largest vaccine manufacturer by number of doses produced and sold globally (more than 1.5 billion doses) against polio, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, Hib, BCG, r-Hepatitis B, measles, mumps, rubella as well as pneumococcal and Covid-19. Vaccines manufactured by the Serum Institute are accredited by the World Health Organization, Geneva and are being used in around 170 countries across the globe in their national immunization programs, saving millions of lives throughout the world.