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The Union Health Ministry has proposed expanding the network of authorised import gateways for drugs, medical devices and cosmetics by adding several inland container depots, a special economic zone and an international airport to facilitate faster clearance and improve supply chain efficiency. The proposed amendment to Rule 43A of the Drugs Rules, 1945, seeks to include additional entry points in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Telangana and Karnataka, according to a gazette notification issued by the ministry. The proposed locations include Inland Container Depots (ICDs) at Sonipat, Piyala and Harsaru in Haryana; Dadri in Uttar Pradesh; Gandhidham/Mundra in Gujarat; Sanath Nagar and Thimmapur in Hyderabad; and Whitefield in Bengaluru. The ministry has also proposed including the Bommasandra Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Karnataka and Noida International Airport in Uttar Pradesh for the import of drugs by air. Rule 43A specifies the authorised ports, airports, railway stations,
Modernising pharma through enterprise resource planning (ERP) transformation replaces vulnerable legacy systems with a single source of truth, ensuring uninterrupted manufacturing continuity, according to experts. "This digital evolution gives life sciences companies the agility and data integrity needed to seamlessly meet strict regulatory requirements," Mandar Ghatnekar, Chief Technology Officer, Biocon, said while addressing the 15th edition of the Pharma IT Summit Mumbai 2026 organised by Exito Media Concepts earlier in the week. Speakers from top pharmaceutical companies, who attended the summit, also advocated for the need for human review of GenAI outputs, particularly in a good practice (GxP) environment. "In a highly regulated industry like pharmaceuticals, successful AI adoption requires a strong foundation of people, process, technology and governance, balancing innovation with regulatory compliance and operational excellence. "The future of AI will be defined not by how