Lakshmi Mittal, Chairman and CEO of ArcelorMittal, and his family have gifted £3.5 million (₹33 crore) to sponsor a critical professorship in vaccinology at the Oxford University.

The post, which is currently held by Professor Adrian Hill, will be known as the Lakshmi Mittal and Family Professorship of Vaccinology in recognition of this support. This contribution will allow Professor Hill to continue with his vital research on outbreak pathogens. Professor Hill is credited with the first clinical trial of Ebola vaccine. He is also the principal investigator for the trial for Covid-19 vaccine at Oxford.

Commenting on the family’s decision to endow the professorship, Mittal said this year has been a wake-up call to the world to be better prepared for pandemics, which can cause massive social and economic disruption. Having always had a keen interest in healthcare, Mittal said he was following with great interest the work on potential vaccines and treatments for Covid.

After a conversation with Professor Hill, “my family and I concluded that the work he and his team are doing is not only extraordinary but essential, not just for this current crisis but for other challenges we may face in the future. The importance of dedicated and ongoing research in this field cannot be overestimated and we are delighted to be supporting this vaccinology professorship at Oxford,” he said.

Professor Hill is the Director of the Oxford Jenner Institute, now the largest academic vaccine centre in the world.

ArcelorMittal in joint venture with Nippon Steel India owns 10 million tonne steel production capacity in India and is in the process of expanding it further.

comment COMMENT NOW