The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu today spoke to the Union Health Minister, Dr. Harsh Vardhan and urged the Centre to consider the request of the Telangana government to set up a vaccine testing and certification laboratory at the Genome Valley in Hyderabad. 

Shri Naidu referred to the request made by the Telangana IT Minister, Shri K T Rama Rao to the Union Health Minister in this regard. Shri Rao, in a letter to the Union Health Minister pointed out that Hyderabad was manufacturing over six billion doses annually and contributing one-third of global vaccines production. 

Dr. Harsh Vardhan assured the Vice President that he would examine the request from all angles. He also informed the Vice President that there were seven vaccine testing and certification laboratories in the world, including the one at Kasauli in Himachal Pradesh, and that an accreditation would be required from an international body for such a facility.

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MS/RK/DP