The Maharashtra state government has ordered medicines from Bangladesh.

Maharashtra government has ordered 10,000 vials of investigational drug 'Remdesivir' from a Bangladeshi company Eskayef Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

Maharashtra government has ordered 10,000 vials of investigational drug 'Remdesivir' from a Bangladeshi company Eskayef Pharmaceuticals Ltd.On 6 June 2020, the state government said that it would procure the repurposed Ebola drug Remdesivir to treat COVID-19 patients for Rs 12000 per vial. Since the Indian manufacturers of the drug are yet to have the marketing authorization for the drug and its innovator Gilead is yet to launch in the market, the state government is open to procuring it from Bangladesh.

But, the government had put on hold its decision to purchase Remdesivir drug from Eskayef Pharmaceuticals Ltd, which has neither got a licensing agreement with manufacturer Gilead Sciences nor an approval to sell the drug to any company in India according to Gilead spokesperson. Senior state officials said they plan to wait for the Drug Controller General of India(DCGI) to approve Indian and foreign companies before initiating a procurement procedure for 10,000 vials.

Consequently, the government said that the decision comes after a revision in the treatment protocol of COVID-19 patients by the Indian Council of Medical Research or ICMR. Remdesivir will be used in only emergency cases and compassionate grounds.

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