We need to look at the sector as a strategic, flagship industry: Rosaiah
Governor K. Rosaiah on Saturday underlined the need for looking at the pharmaceutical sector as a strategic and flagship industry.
Speaking at the golden jubilee National Pharmacy Week celebrations here, organised by the Indian Pharmaceutical Association, Tamil Nadu Branch, the Governor said that with low cost innovation, low capital requirements, cost effective running facilities, well established manufacturing processes and R and D infrastructure, the country was destined to emerge as an alternative source for affordable medicines. “We need to look at pharmaceutical sector as a strategic and flagship industry.”
Mr. Rosaiah said priority areas for pharmaceutical research and development should be identified. India's expertise in developing new and innovative processes for known molecules needed to be explored.
New drug development
Initiation of new drug development for diseases of relevance to Indian population was imperative. Another need was to evolve new regulatory measures to address the emerging concerns of the industry in its multifaceted dimension.
“Even though we have achieved a distinct place in globe in the pharmaceutical field, yet we have a lot to achieve.”
Pharmacists should be brought into the mainstream. They should be the core member in the team towards health care, he said.
Mr. Rosaiah presented the Best Pharmacist Award to S. Manivannan, Deputy Drug Controller, Central Drug Standard Control Organisation.
Higher level
Speaking on this year's theme, ‘Pharmacist: healthcare professional', Drug Controller, Karnataka, B.R. Jagashetty, said transparency, integrity and accountability would take pharmaceutical profession to a much higher level.
The secretary of the Tamil Nadu Indian Pharmaceutical Association Trust, M.M. Yousuf, said the organisation was committed to updating the knowledge of pharmacists.
It was active in advancing the knowledge of the public in the health care scenario.
Quality control laboratory
Plans are afoot to set up a hitech quality control laboratory to test the genuineness of drugs.
The association president, R. Narayanaswamy, and secretary, J. Jayaseelan, were among those who spoke.
Keywords: pharmaceutical industry, medical research
The quality control measures done last year which exposed the scale of misuse in the industry showed be done periodically and not once in a lifetime. Low cost, low capital requirement and the final result could be poor qulaity product unfit for human use. Time to set up strict regulations with matters that has effect on both Rich and the Poor( Homo Sapeins) and the same needs to be done for the animal pharmacy industry which has no voice to show their problems.
Life saving drugs are charged at times 10 times more . The medical store man knows this more than any one. The more reputed the marketing / manufacturing firm more is the price. Why doesn't the government control the prices ?
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