The conclave with the theme ‘Make, Develop and Innovate’ addresses key issues of pharma sector
Hansraj Ahir, Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers, while addressing the CII’s 13th National Pharmaceuticals Conclave in New Delhi, has assured all support to the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry to grow and reach global scales for catering to the burgeoning domestic and global markets. The theme of the conclave, ‘Make, Develop and Innovate’ encompasses the three critical components that the industry can grow and contribute substantially to the national economy.
KG Ananthakrishnan, Co-Chairman, CII National Committee on Pharmaceuticals and MD, MSD Pharmaceuticals; Dr VK Subburaj, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers; Hansraj Ahir, Minister of State, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers; Dr Rajiv I Modi, Chairman, CII National Committee on Pharmaceuticals and CMD, Cadila Pharmaceuticals; Dr Murtaza Khorakiwala, Co-Chairman, CII National Committee on Pharmaceuticals & MD, Wockhardt; Amita Sarkar, Deputy Director General, Confederation of Indian Industry
Ahir said that the industry should come forward to address huge prospects and challenges ahead in segments like manufacture of bulk drugs, medical equipment and in on R&D. He said that the government will lend all its support in an endeavour to make India a quality and cost-effective pharma hub. The programmes launched recently, such as Make in India, Skill India, Start up India etc. will give a critical push to the entire chain of life sciences, he added.
The minister observed that the pharma industry should make quality drugs at affordable prices to the common man. In this regard, he mentioned about various initiatives taken by the present government to reduce the price of life saving drugs to make them affordable to the common man. “We have to find newer approaches for diagnosis and treatment of patients since such diseases go unnoticed, particularly among the poorer sections of the society,” he said.
Dr Arun Chandavarkar, CEO and Joint Managing Director, Biocon; Dr Murtaza Khorakiwala, Co-Chairman, CII National Committee on Pharma and MD, Wockhardt; Nick Mitchell, Co-Conveynor of the Telangana State Life Sciences and Health Care Panel, CII and Managing Director, Phenomenex India; Dr K Vijay Raghavan, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science & Technology; Dr VG Somani, Joint Drugs Controller (lndia), Central Drugs Standard Control Organization; Gajanan Nabar, Managing Director, Praj Industries
While giving the keynote address, Dr VK Subburaj, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, said that the pharma sector in India will become a $300-billion industry by 2020. He said, “Achieving the target presents itself both prospects and challenges. On one side, the industry should proactively gear up to emerge as a quality drug producer of the world, and on the other, there is a need for forging greater synergies between the government, industry and other stakeholders.”
He also mentioned that it was important to have positive approach towards conflict resolution among players since some of the simple issues are taking longer time for their resolution. “We have to develop a proactive approach to solve such issues based on the principle of give and take,” he pointed out.
Subburaj said that having consultations with the stakeholders, the government has finalised a uniform marketing code, which will be announced soon. It took a longer duration than that was warranted to finalise the code on account of differing views and perceptions among the stakeholders. He also said that an interministerial committee was recently formed where meetings were held to frame guidelines for environmental clearances needed for the manufacture of bulk drugs. The notification of the guidelines will be issued any day from now, he disclosed.
Subburaj also referred to several initiatives taken by the state governments in setting up the bulk drugs parks, which are under various stages of planning and implementation. “Our exports are poised to increase in the coming years. We have achieved cost competitiveness and now we have to focus on quality to further enhance our global foothold,” he told the industry. He also explained the initiatives of the government in revamping the drug control act and toning up the regulatory mechanism.
Dr Rajiv I Modi, Chairman, CII and CMD, Cadila Pharmaceuticals mentioned about the need for ensuring higher returns on capital invested in the pharma sector to motivate more domestic and international players to invest in the sector.
KG Ananthakrishan, Co Chairman, CII National Committee on Pharma and MD, MSD Pharmaceuticals, said that pharma sector can play a pivotal role in achieving the vision of ‘Healthy India.’ The theme of the conclave- Make, Develop and Innovate- encompasses the three critical components that the industry can grow and contribute substantially to the national economy.
Murtaza Khorakkiwala, Co-chairman, CII National Committee on Pharmaceuticals and MD, Wockhardt wanted further incentivisation of R&D efforts and creating a strong patent regime.