India's Potential to Become the Pharmacy of the World

India's Journey to Become the Pharmacy of the World 

    With a history which dates back to the ancient practices of Ayurveda, India has cemented its position as a dependable country when it comes to health crisis. India's pharmaceutical industry is witnessing steep growth with lots of innovation and employment generation. 

    India is promoting a positive Image of the country world-wide. The pharma industry has brought path-breaking innovations and rapidly improved its global potential for distributing time-critical drugs to every corner of the world.

For instance, under Vaccine Maitri initiative and Neighbourhood First Policy, India has supplied more than 150 nations with medicines and vaccines. Ex: Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) to USA. 

However there are some issues associated with this sector which requires attention:-

Forces that Contribute to India's Pharmaceutical Growth

    India's transformation into the Pharmacy of the World' is a result of several pivotal factors that have propelled its pharmaceutical industry to international prominence. These include: 

1) Robust Generic Drug Industry: India's robust generic drag industry plays a pivotal role in enhancing global access to essential medicines. 

2) Production Cost Efficiency: India's cost of production and labour cost is lower than western

countries.

3) Leading Vaccine Supplier: India is major contributor to affordable global vaccine coverage, producing vaccines like the recombinant Hepatitis B vaccine and COVID-19 vaccines.

4) Abundant Talent Pool: India is the largest provider of pharma and biotech professionals globally, after China.

5) Regulatory Compliance: Regulatory bodies such as the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation(CDSCO), ensure strict adherence to international quality and safety standards. 

6) Export Dominance: Having the largest number of US-FDA compliant pharmaceutical plants, India exports pharmaceutical products to more than 200 countries (developed as well as developing), contributing significantly to the global healthcare supply chain.

7) Research and Development (R&D): India's significant investments in pharmaceutical R&D focuses on innovative drug discovery, biosimilars, and biotechnology.

8)Infrastructure and Manufacturing Facilities: India has established pharmaceutical hubs, clusters, and specialized SEZs, promoting world-class manufacturing and export capabilities.

9)Government Support: The Indian government

offers tax incentives, subsidies, and research and development investments to foster sector growth and Innovation.

10) Global Collaborations: Collaborations between India and global pharmaceutical companies and research institutions facilitate the exchange of knowledge, expertise, and research findings

For instance, Serum Institute of India partnered with US-based Codagenix Inc. to produce live-attenuated vaccine (LAV) for Covid.

Challenges Faced

▷ Challenges regarding Intellectual Property Rights(IPR): This includes the lack of protection for intellectual property, the slow pace of the Indian patent office to grant patents, and generic versions of patented drugs being produced and sold in the country.

▷ Overreliance on Foreign Raw Materials: India heavily depends on China for bulk drugs or Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIS) requirements, leading to vulnerability when supply chains are disrupted.

▷ Unstable Pricing and Policy Environment: Frequent changes in the Gol's Drug Price Control Order create industry uncertainty, deterring production expansion and new investments.

▷ Counterfeit Drug Problem: Counterfeit drugs continue to pose risks to patient safety and public health, reecting systemic issues in monitoring and regulation.

▷ Limited Infrastructure: Inadequate infrastructure facilities, including storage, hindered the timely availability of critical drugs like Remdesivir and Hydroxychloroquine during the pandemic.

▷ Intense Global Competition: Indi

an pharmaceutical companies face competition from global counterparts like China, Israel, and Japan, impacting their competitiveness. 

▷ Digitalization and Automation Lag: The industry

excels in producing quality drugs but lags in adopting digitalization and automation, potentially affecting efficiency and quality control.

▷ Unethical marketing tactics: Pharmaceutical companies often adopt unethical practices to promote their products/brands by providing freebies for doctors and medical professionals. This increases the chances of the patient consuming irrational and/or unnecessary medicines.

▷ Unregulated Innovation: Large number of antibiotics are consumed in the form of xed-dose combinations (FDCs). But many antibiotic FDCS sold in India are of unknown effectiveness and have not been approved by CDSCO. This increases their potential to accelerate antibiotic resistance.

▷Lack of Transparency: The Pharma ecosystem does not actively communicate the manufacturing processes and the side-effects of drugs to patients.

Way Forward

    Securing the future of India's pharmaceutical industry demands a concerted effort to build resilient and sustainable global supply chains. This necessitates the following measures: 

1) Conducive Policies: Regulatory Reforms with focus on quality. Self-reliance in APIs, Thrust of BALD through incentivizing innovation and industry-academia collaboration.

2) Introducing Bar Code for all the drugs- Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) has recommended that barcodes or QR codes be introduced to help track and trace drugs. It will help to reduce the threat of counter fein drugs.

3) Boost Production: Streamlining pharmaceutical manufacturing, implementing policies for the movement of manufacturing personnel across states, and supporting ancillary suppliers such as packaging material and solvents for pharmaceutical manufacturers.

4) Strengthening Supply Chain and Logistics: Integration of land, air, waterway, maritime, and port facilities to strengthen supply chain and logistics infrastructure.

5) Ethical Policy Framework: Clear statutory framework is necessary to review marketing practices of pharmaceutical companies and impose penalties for transgressions by drug companies.

    India's pharmaceuticals sector has grown with India emerging as a global medical superpower. To harness the pharma industry's full potential, the stability, predictability and coherence of policy are fundamental. It should prioritise patient centricity while striking an optimal balance between access, affordability and innovation.