The Struggles of India’s Vaccine Giant

<p>When the coronavirus hit, the Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine maker, seemed uniquely positioned to help. It struck a deal with AstraZeneca, promising a billion vaccine doses to low- and middle-income nations. </p><p>Earlier this year, a ban instituted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi put a stop to those plans. </p><p>What has that meant for the nations promised millions of doses?</p><p>Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/emily-schmall?smid=pc-thedaily">Emily Schmall</a>, a South Asia correspondent for The New York Times based in New Delhi. </p><p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/signup/NTTD?smid=pc-thedaily">Sign up here</a> to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/the-daily?module=inline">subscribe to our newsletter</a>. </p><p>Background reading: </p><ul><li>The Serum Institute vowed to protect its country from the coronavirus and inoculate the world’s poor, but <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/07/world/india-serum-institute-covid19.htmlThe%20Serum%20Institute%20vowed%20to%20protect%20the%20country%20from%20the%20coronavirus%20and%20inoculate%20the%20world%E2%80%99s%20poor,%20but%20India%E2%80%99s%20crisis%20has%20pushed%20it%20past%20its%20limits.%20%20Big-power%20muscle%20flexing%20helps%20explain%20much%20of%20the%20world%E2%80%99s%20vaccine%20inequities,%20but%20there%E2%80%99s%20another%20reason%20behind%20insufficient%20doses:%20The%20challenge%20of%20making%20them%20is%20unprecedented.">India’s crisis has pushed it past its limits</a>.</li><li>Big-power muscle flexing helps explain many of the world’s vaccine inequities, but there’s another problem: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/03/world/global-coronavirus-vaccine-shortage.htmlThe%20Serum%20Institute%20vowed%20to%20protect%20the%20country%20from%20the%20coronavirus%20and%20inoculate%20the%20world%E2%80%99s%20poor,%20but%20India%E2%80%99s%20crisis%20has%20pushed%20it%