Union Minister of Science and Technology Dr. Jitendra Singh has launched the first indigenous antibiotic drug named Nafithromycin for resistant infections. Addressing the event in New Delhi, Mr Singh said that the three-day treatment regimen of Nafithromycin is a game-changer against drug-resistant pneumonia, a condition responsible for over two million deaths worldwide annually. The minister added that after 2014, researchers received the right kind of support to explore their potential. Dr. Singh stated that Prime Minister’s personal intervention has made the task far more easier now.

The Made in India Antibiotic Nafithromycin has been developed with the support of Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), a unit of the Department of Biotechnology and has been brought to market under the trade name Miqnaf.  It is the country’s first indigenously developed antibiotic aimed at tackling Antimicrobial Resistance-AMR.