Comments
Hasmukh Rawal, Managing Director and founder of Pune-based Mylab Discovery Solutions, is a scientist-turned-entrepreneur. He has experience in the commercial development of applied molecular diagnostics solutions and drives product development at Mylab. Speaking to BusinessLine , Rawal explains how India’s first self-use rapid test, CoviSelfTM, will prove to be a game-changer and Mylab’s global plans. Excerpts:
When will self-use test kits be available in the market?
The kit has been approved (by ICMR), and we will be able to send out the kit to the market within a few days. We hope this kit reaches people sooner than later in the time of the pandemic.
How you are going to increase production capacity?
At this moment we have a production capacity of 70 lakh tests per week. And, we are already planning to increase to 1 crore tests per week within 14 days. We manufacture at our own site near Pune.
Are you planning to partner with any global player for production?
These test kits are being manufactured indigenously using machines and supplies that are from India, so there is no global partnership we have done for this yet.
What possible problems/ issues you anticipate when people will start using the kit?
For the common man, it will be important that they follow the instructions provided with the kit. It will help them to test accurately.
We have designed our kit in a way that it is unique in design and in a lot of other things. There are just three components that one needs to use. The swab is designed specifically and will not cause damage or any injury. The buffer tube turns into a dropper, and the swab sample collected stays there. This helps reduce contamination. The buffer tube/ dropper is built in a way that only one drop comes out in one press. It is calibrated thing, so the chances of doing wrong (test) are very less. It has direct interoperability with the ICMR portal, and it helps you track the tests done.
What is the total investment company has done for this project?
It is hard for me to give you the investment number. We have been preparing for it for some time now.
What are your future plans?
Our aim is to make medical tests affordable. We are into creating lab infrastructure across India. We are making investments in labs for those who want to operate them. Also, we are taking steps towards becoming a global player, and few partnerships are in the offing.
Comments
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.