Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, 67, Entrepreneur

As the first drugs that combated the complications of Covid-19 cases were discovered, Indians found them either not available or prohibitively expensive. But then India got one affordable medicine of its own in Itolizumab, made by Biocon, a company that is synonymous with the drive of its founder Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw. Already in use as a medication against psoriasis, Itolizumab was found effective in mitigating the cytokine storm of Covid-19 that often leads to complications and fatalities. Shaw is also an important voice in influencing policy in dealing with the pandemic, advocating an easing of the lockdown so that the economy can get going again. Her exhortations to use the crisis to bolster and pivot India’s healthcare into a driver of progress could be a key economic strategy of the future.

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