Drug cartels hampering India's generics business: Sharma

Minister for Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma on Monday lashed out multinational drug makers accusing them of forming cartels that was hampering India’s generics drugs business and depriving the poorer countries access to cheaper life-saving medicines.

Sharma said India would nevertheless continue to ensure smooth supply of affordable life-saving drugs for poor people across the world.

“Legal battles had to be fought and won due to stranglehold of cartel of multi-national drug companies which is denying the availability of these drugs to people in poor countries … India will not allow this to happen where life-saving medicines are out of the reach of poor people. We will ensure that whatever new molecules develop, the benefit must reach the poor people,” the minister told the India-Africa conclave.

He said Indian generic has played a pivotal role in bringing down the cost of treatment of diseases like HIV AIDS from above $11,000 to less than $400, for which it had faced several hurdles in the form of “campaigns and backdoor manipulations”.

The minister said such campaigns having vested interests might impact the production of new molecules and medicines as well.

Pharmaceutical exports from India had been growing by leaps and bounds with the development of high-end clinical research and development that has boosted India’s presence in the global generics drugs market. India is also known as the ‘pharmacy to the world.’

Sharma held a bilateral meeting with Minister of Industry & Commerce of Mozambique Armando Inroga. India on Monday set the bilateral trade target at $70 billion in the next four years from the present $45 billion.

“We are currently engaged in negotiations for preferential trade agreement with SACU and are negotiating Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). These are integral to our commitment of engaging with all the regional economic communities of Africa to build a network which will facilitate flouring South- South Trade.”