Haffkine Bio-Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited, whose vaccine helped make India polio-free, and helped battle the disease across 45 nations, is going to commence research on a cure for blood-related diseases such as thalassaemia and haemophilia. The research is in its infancy, but the institute is hoping to provide a cure to thousands of patients across the world.

"We have played a major role in eradicating polio in India," said Sampada Mehta, managing director, Haffkine Bio-Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited. "Through UNICEF, we have been supplying the vaccine to over 45 nations. But since the time our country was declared polio-free [in 2014 by WHO], our main resource has stopped. So, we have decided to focus on different research, mostly on thalassaemia and haemophilia."