Citing health concerns from pharmaceutical industrial pollution, civil society groups have urged the European Commission to make environmental norms a part of overseas inspections.
In a letter signed by village council Panchayat presidents of Edulabad, Makthala Anantaram, Chinna Raavarla and Palligudem, representatives of Indian Public Health Association and rights groups, the president and vice-president of European Commission and the EU Commissioners for the Environment, Industry, Health and Trade, the petitioners sought revisions to EU’s Good Manufacturing Practices by inclusion of environmental norms when inspections of factories are done overseas.
Pharmaceutical pollution in Telugu States, Himachal Pradesh and parts of Tamil Nadu has affected health sans regulation of discharges from the factories.
“Successive studies have shown that air, water and soil at around the pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are significantly contaminated by toxic chemicals and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), notably from the production of antimicrobial drugs such as antibiotics. However, API discharges from factories are currently not regulated, and enforcement of existing pollution norms is extremely lacking and inadequate,” said Anil Dayakar of Gamana, a Hyderabad-based NGO and a signatory to the letter.
The letter also pointed out that several studies have linked anti-microbial resistance to pharmaceutical discharges.
