A multi-pronged strategy encouraging bulk drug manufacturing to reduce dependence on imports, setting up of clusters for small and medium-sized pharma companies, making changes to the existing regulations to promote medical devices production is being chalked out by the Centre.
The measures, in various stages of formulation, are focused on providing impetus to the pharmaceutical industry and making medicines as well as medical devices affordable and accessible. This was the underlying message Joint Secretary to the Department of Pharmaceuticals Sudansh Pant underscored addressing the CEO Conclave organised at the ISB campus here as part of the Bio Asia 2015 convention.
According to Mr. Pant, the Centre is looking at ways and means to encourage bulk drug production, since this is an area where “we have become uncompetitive and as a result imports have gone up.” A package of incentives, he added, could be expected in the next few months.
It is also planning to offer infrastructural and monetary support for setting up common facilities such as effluent plants and training centres to promote growth of SMEs in the pharma industry. On medical devices, Mr. Pant said, a task force is likely to submit recommendations in about six months on how the huge growth potential could be tapped. Yet another measure, he said, would be re-launch of the Jan Aushadhi stores to dispense affordable, branded generic medicines. The CEO Conclave debated on how to make medicines affordable, harnessing technology to improve access to healthcare facilities, strengthening the Indian regulatory framework and need to maintain quality of products.
