Cyrus Poonawalla: Dr. Cyrus S. Poonawalla, the visionary founder of the Serum Institute of India (SII), was hospitalized on Thursday after experiencing a heart attack, as confirmed by senior representatives from SII and Dr. Cyrus S. Poonawalla Hospital.
Currently holding the positions of managing director and chair at SII, Dr. Poonawalla played a pivotal role in the large-scale production of the Covishield vaccine, a crucial defense against COVID-19 during the pandemic.
According to an advisor for the Ruby Hall Clinic, Dr. Poonawalla was admitted on November 16 after suffering a mild myocardial infarction. Under the supervision of Dr. Purvez Grant, he underwent an angioplasty on November 17.
Angioplasty, a procedure performed to clear clogged coronary arteries caused by coronary artery disease, was deemed necessary following a heart attack. This emergency intervention effectively restores blood flow to the heart muscle without the need for open-heart surgery.
Establishing the Serum Institute of India in 1966, Dr. Cyrus Poonawalla aimed to produce cost-effective immuno-biologicals locally, addressing a critical shortage of these life-saving resources in the nation.
