Corona Backfire in India: Prices of Major Medicines Go High

Touted to be the second-largest populous nation, India is currently facing the impact of factory shutdowns in China, mainly those that are associated with the production of medicines and mobile phones reports NDTV.

"Prices of paracetamol, the most commonly used analgesic, have jumped by 40% in India, while the cost of azithromycin, an antibiotic used for treating a variety of bacterial infections, has risen by 70%," Pankaj R Patel the chairman of Zydus Cadila said as per NDTV report. 

The report further adds that the pharma industry could face a shortage in finished drug formulations beginning from April if the supplies are not restored by the first week of next month.

India is one of the major countries that depend heavily on imported Raw materials and intermediate goods from China. With the massive outbreak of novel coronavirus, China has been pushed to shut down the global supply of its goods as production was slowed down and people were restricted from moving in and out of the country.