Government Keen to Partner with Industry, Says Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister at CII Pharma Summit

Government’s keenness and openness to working with industry and making suitable amendments in policies to spur manufacturing activity, the need for industry to focus more on research and ensure a more fuller utilization of the country’s technically trained manpower and an admission of the unhealthy state of affairs at public sector enterprises were some of the key points made by the Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers, Mr Hansraj Gangaram Ahir, at the 12^th National Pharmaceutical Conclave organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here on Friday.

The two-day summit has, for the first time, witnessed the coming together of all big pharma associations in the country such as the Indian Pharmaceutical Association (IPA), the Indian Drugs Manufacturers’ Association (IDMA), the Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI) and the Bulk Drug Manufacturers’ Association (BDMA). Senior representatives and heads of all the associations were present at the opening of the pharma summit which also saw the captains of pharma industry from across the country converging at one platform.

Taking a refreshingly pro-active stance, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Dr V K Subburaj, said it was time for action and not for preparing another set of recommendations. He exhorted both government and industry to sit together and decide what needed to be done to bring the sector out of the low growth phase that it had entered into in the past couple of years. The secretary also complimented the pharma industry for bringing laurels to the country and for being the second highest foreign exchange earner after IT. He rued the fact that while pharma sector had grown in the country, the same had not been the case with medical devices sector and the country continued to depend on imports for bulk of its requirement of diagnostic equipment and other devices. He blamed the poor growth of devices sector for the high cost of healthcare in the country and asked industry to work on correcting that anomaly.

Additional Secretary, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and Director General, Central Government Health Scheme, Mr Navreet Singh Kang, said incentives to encourage research were important. He said the fact that medical devices and clinical trials were being subjected to the same standards as of pharma products was on the radar of the government and it was working on doing something in that direction. He said the government wanted to partner with industry on clinical trials and assured that whatever tweaking of administrative machinery was required for that, will be undertaken.

CII’s National Committee on Pharmaceuticals today reiterated the need for a collaborative approach between the pharmaceutical industry and the government to make, develop and innovate in India thereby leading to the key objective of a healthy India. The aim of the conclave is to create an all-stakeholder platform to discuss the critical issues plaguing the pharmaceutical sector in India. While the Indian pharmaceutical industry is taking great strides in manufacturing and developing in India, there is a great need to encourage innovation in India and help maintain the country’s competitive edge. The points were discussed at the inaugural session of the 12^th National Pharmaceutical Conclave organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry’s National Committee on Pharmaceuticals.

The conclave intends to focus on the issues that need urgent attention of the industry stakeholders. Further, it endeavours to bring the decision makers together so that the discussions result in meaningful actionable outcomes. The conference has been designed systematically to take stakeholders through the opportunities and challenges inherent in the pharmaceutical landscape in India and finally amalgamate findings while devising recommendations to aid implementation.

Dr Rajiv Modi, Chairman, CII National Committee on Pharmaceuticals and Chairman & Managing Director, Cadilla Pharmaceuticals Ltd said: “The Indian pharmaceuticals industry is the world’s third biggest market by volume with a compounded annual growth rate of 15 percent over the last five years. It is expected to attain a market size of USD 45 billion by 2020. The inclusion of the pharmaceuticals sector in the “Make in India” campaign provides a unique opportunity to the industry to push it's agenda of R&D, innovation and affordable healthcare for all. India is ready to become the ‘Pharmacy of the World’ by giving greater impetus to quality, exports, public-private and private-private partnerships.”

He added: "Further, India should also develop and formalise a robust and comprehensive IPR policy, in the wake of discovery research gaining huge momentum today, with most Indian companies ploughing back a sizeable percentage of their turnover into R&D. In the coming years, many innovative drugs will be launched by Indian pharmaceutical companies, thereby boosting the image of Brand India.”

“The 12th National Pharmaceutical Conclave brings together the government and the pharmaceutical industry on a common platform to discuss, debate and thereafter arrive upon key recommendations.  The theme – make, develop and innovate in India – aims at creating a healthy India by reducing the gap between biopharmaceutical innovation and the people who need it. To improve access to medicines in India, and to healthcare more broadly, we believe collaborative multi-sector approaches that meet both the Government’s health policy objectives and ensure patient access to innovative medicines are needed. Policy, regulatory and legal reforms could substantially improve the business environment for the biopharmaceutical sector in India, in addition to supporting the new Government’s goals of bringing growth to India through research, innovation and manufacturing,” said Mr. K.G. Ananthakrishnan, Co-Chairman, CII National Committee on Pharmaceuticals and Managing Director, MSD Pharmaceuticals Pvt Ltd.