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Reliance Industries Ltd has submitted a proposal for the use of an oral, anti-viral drug Niclosamide as a potential Covid-19 medicine.
Niclosamide — which was discovered in 1958 and is on the World Health Organization’s (WHO) list of essential medicines — is used to treat tapeworm infestations, including diphyllobothriasis, hymenolepiasis and taeniasis . RIL, which mentioned about the application in its annual report for financial year 2021, did not provide any further details.
Low-cost sanitisers
Reliance’s’ IL’s R&D team has designed a process to produce sanitisers aligned with WHO specifications at 20 per cent of market cost, it said, adding that the team is also working with various Council of Scientific & Industrial Research laboratories to certify Nexar polymer, which has shown the ability to destroy the lipid layer of various viruses and bacteria.
The company has also developed novel cost-effective diagnostic kits called ‘R-Green’ and ‘R-Green Pro’ for Covid-19 detection, which have received Indian Council of Medical Research approvals. The country’s largest private sector firm is also working to address the issue of nsufficient ventilator shortage supply in hospital emergency rooms across hospitals in the country by deploying a concept developed in Italy.
Oxygen generators
Foreseeing a rise in the demand for onsite oxygen as the pandemic rages, RIL has started working on value-engineered design for generators capable of producing 5-7 litres of oxygen per minute with a purity of 90-95 per cent.
The firm has re-purposed its plants in Jamnagar to produce medical-grade oxygen and has become the largest producer of the key gas from a single location in India. Since the start of the pandemic, RIL has supplied over 55,000 tonnes of medical-grade liquid oxygen, it added.
Aid for staff
The company is providing up to three months pay to its employees as interest-free advance in case of an exigency. In case of demise of an employee, it will provide financial support to the family and bear the educational expenses of children.
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