Government must check quality of medicines if import from India allowed: PPMA

Domestic pharmaceutical industry fears that sale of substandard and spurious drugs could increase if Indian drugs manufacturers are allowed entry into the local market. Vice-Chairman Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers' Association (PPMA), Nasir M Qureshi told Business Recorder that the government should set up a mechanism to check quality of medicines imported from India.
"India is considered as the biggest contributor of fake medicines in the world as 35 percent of fake medicines are being manufactured in India. Unlike Pakistan's pharmaceutical industry, which is centralised and being regulated by a national body called the Drug Regulatory Authority, India's drug manufacturers operate without a central regulatory framework. Every Indian state has its own regulatory body and there is no central drug regularity authority to streamline the pharmaceutical sector across India," Nasir M. Qureshi said.
"Top 50 medicines are being sold at much cheaper rates in Pakistan than in India. Around 500 pharmaceutical units are currently operating in Pakistan including 25 multinational medicine companies. The local pharmaceutical sector fulfils 70 percent medicine requirements of the country while 30 percent is fulfilled by the multinational medicine companies," he maintained. He accused the Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Industry of forcing the government to grant the status of Most Favoured Nation (MFN) to India, and allowing import of medicines from India which could have adverse affect on the domestic Pharmaceutical Industry.
Around 30,000 pharmaceutical units are operating in the India and the volume of Indian pharmaceutical industry is around $20 billion annually while Pakistan pharmaceutical industry can generate only $1.2 billion, he said. Though, the Ministry of National Regulation and Services wants to strengthen domestic pharmaceutical industry yet the government is not paying heed to promoting it, he added. About the PPMA reservation on Tyno syrup investigation by the government of Punjab, he said the issue is still pending.