For the pharma units of north Andhra, delay in developing air cargo complex here for their products is turning into a bitter pill to swallow The sector has attracted heavy investment in not only at Jawaharlal Nehru Pharma City, Parawada, but also at Pydhibheemavaram, Ranasthalam, Nakkapalli, and Vizianagaram making north Andhra the pharma hub of Andhra Pradesh.
“We can get testing lab, cold storage and customs clearance here instead of sending our consignments to Hyderabad for despatching them to the United States, Europe and other destinations giving us a freight, time and cost advantage,” JNPC CEO Lal Krishna told The Hindu .
He said the turnover from JNPC, which was around Rs.6,000 crore, could be doubled in next four to five years if air cargo facility is provided at Visakhapatnam International Airport.
After cyclone Hudhud dealt a body blow to various units at JNPC, normal production began on November 10. At present, 54 are under operation and 20 under construction at domestic and SEZ area. So far the total investment made was put at over Rs.7,000 crore. Units located in the SEZ like Eisai have made several representations for scraping of Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT).
U.S. curbs Following curbs imposed by the United States on sourcing pharma products mostly API from India, the business registered a negative growth by 4 per cent. Of late, exports are picking up slowly, which is a welcome trend.
For boosting investments in the sector, those involved in pharma production are seeking opening of the offices of Pharma Export Council (under Ministry of Commerce) to avail branding, marketing and research advantage, Drug Controller by State government and establishment of National Institute of Pharmaceutical Engineering Research (NIPER) for creation of skilled manpower required by the industry.
