Page 11 - Drugs

Zydus Noveltech dissolved for not generating 'meaningful revenue'

It had nil operating revenue and a net worth of Rs 10 crore as of March 31, 2023

Indian companies likely to garner up to 50% USFDA nod share in 2023

Companies may get up to 375 ANDA approvals in 2023, more than last year's 355

No shortage of TB drugs in India, regular supply to states ensured: Govt

"Regular assessments are conducted to evaluate the stock positions at various levels, from central warehouses to peripheral health institutes," it said

No shortage of anti-TB drugs in country, six months stock available: Govt

The ministry has previously stated that all drugs used in the treatment of drug-sensitive TB are available with sufficient stocks for a time period ranging from six months and above

Loss of patents: Indian pharma companies gain, shows PharmaTrac data

While MNCs posted a 5 per cent five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in the chronic segment, Indian pharma companies have recorded a 9 per cent 5-year CAGR

War-wracked Myanmar now world's top opium producer, says UN agency

Myanmar, already wracked by a brutal civil war, has regained the unenviable title of the world's biggest opium producer, according to a UN agency report released on Tuesday. The Southeast Asian country's opium output has topped that of Afghanistan, where the ruling Taliban imposed a ban on its production, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said in its Southeast Asia Opium Survey 2023." The Taliban's ban has led to a 95 per cent drop in the cultivation of opium poppies, UNODC said last month. Opium, the base from which morphine and heroin are produced, is harvested from poppy flowers. From 2022 to 2023, Myanmar saw the estimated amount of land used to grow the illicit crop increase 18 per cent to 47,100 hectares (116,400 acres), the new UNODC report said. Although the area under cultivation has not returned to historic peaks of nearly 58,000 ha (143,300 acres) cultivated in 2013, after three consecutive years of increases, poppy cultivation in Myanmar is expanding and ...

China's children battling pneumonia shows dangers of drug resistance

An outbreak of walking pneumonia, normally a mild infection, struck millions of children in the second half of 2023, creating Covid flashbacks and raising fears about another novel pathogen

HC raps Maharashtra govt for letting budgetary allocation for drugs lapse

The Bombay High Court on Friday pulled up the Maharashtra government for not releasing or spending the entire budgetary allocation for procurement of drugs and medical equipment, citing that it was letting the amount lapse at the cost of the healthcare system. A division bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Arif Doctor sought to know from the government what steps have been taken to spend the budgetary allocation, the reasons for not releasing the amount entirely in the past and for not using the released sum. The court was hearing a bunch of petitions, including one initiated suo motu (on its own), raising concerns over the high number of deaths at government hospitals in Nanded and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar districts. Advocate General Birendra Saraf informed the bench that as per earlier orders, the government has now appointed a chief executive officer for the Maharashtra Medicines Procurement Authority, and the process of issuing tenders to procure drugs and equipmen

Cocaine worth Rs 220 cr seized at Paradip port, Vietnamese crew detained

In a major drug haul, cocaine worth Rs 220 crore was seized from a ship at the Paradip port in Odisha's Jagatsinghpur district, officials said on Friday. Twenty-two suspicious packets were spotted in a crane on the ship anchored at the Paradip International Cargo Terminal (PICT) on Thursday night, they said. After the crane operator found it, he informed the authorities, suspecting it to be some kind of explosive. After tests, it was confirmed to be cocaine, they said. In a statement, the Customs Commissionerate said that they searched the ship around midnight acting on intelligence inputs and found the packets of cocaine. The Panama-registered cargo ship, named MV Debi, began its voyage from Egypt and arrived here via the Gresik port in Indonesia. It was scheduled to depart for Denmark with steel plates from here, officials said. "Twenty-two packets were recovered from a crane on the ship. The powder-like substance was confirmed as cocaine after examination using a special kit. T

Uttar Pradesh government eyes 10-12% share in India's pharma sector

UP has signed memorandums of understanding with more than 80 CSIR and DRDO labs for research and development on affordable drugs

Pharma majors turn attention to OTC drugs in post-pandemic wellness shift

Building a healthy OTC brand, however, is not an easy task. OTC brands need time to grow and build a recall value once they have established some credibility

BSF recovers China made Quadcopter Drones used in drug smuggling in Punjab

The CAPF intercepted the movement of a suspected drone near the Village Mianwali District of Tarn Taran, following which the BSF troops immediately reached the spot to intercept the drone.

Lupin ties up with Amman Pharma for commercialisation of biosimilar product

Drug firm Lupin on Friday said it has tied up with Amman Pharma to market a biosimilar product in the Middle East region. The company has inked a licensing pact for the commercialisation and marketing of Ranibizumab, a biosimilar of Lucentis, in various countries including Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iraq and Lebanon. Ranibizumab is indicated for the treatment of patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration, macular edema following retinal vein occlusion (RVO) and diabetic macular edema, among others. Shares of the company on Friday ended 2.04 per cent down at Rs 1,180.20 apiece on the BSE.

Govt mulling guidelines for OTC medicines; move to reduce burden on doctors

Industry players present at the event highlighted that the OTC market offers a major business opportunity, but it needs transparent and clear regulations

Experts criticise proposal to tag nicotine therapy as prescription drugs

It may hinder accessibility for smokers attempting to quit, they say

Sun Pharma, Aurobindo recall drugs from US market due to mfg issues

Leading drug makers Sun Pharmaceutical Industries and Aurobindo Pharma are recalling products from the US market due to manufacturing issues, according to the US Food & Drug Administration. As per the latest Enforcement Report issued by the American health regulator, a US-based subsidiary of Mumbai-based Sun Pharma is recalling 69,707 cartons of Cequa (cyclosporine ophthalmic solution) from the US market. The medication is used for the treatment of dry eyes. New Jersey-based Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Inc is recalling the product for being "Subpotent', USFDA stated. The company initiated the nationwide (US) Class III recall on September 7 this year. As per the USFDA, a Class III recall is initiated in a "situation in which use of, or exposure to, a violative product is not likely to cause adverse health consequences". The US health regulator stated that Aurobindo Pharma is recalling 9,890 bottles of Rasagiline Tablets, a medication indicated for the treatment of Parkinson's ..

US announces action against Chinese fentanyl supply chain producers

In one of the biggest actions the administration has taken against fentanyl trafficking, the US on Tuesday announced a series of indictments and sanctions against 14 people and 14 firms across China and Canada related to the import of the drug to the United States. Leaders from the Treasury, Justice and Homeland Security departments, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the US Postal Inspection Service are set to gather at Justice Department headquarters Tuesday afternoon to outline the administration's latest action against what it calls a major China-based syndicate that sold chemicals to American drug dealers and Mexico-based cartels. All but two of the firms and one of the people targeted are based in China. Mexico and China are the primary sources for fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances trafficked directly into the US, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration, which is tasked with combating illicit drug trafficking. Nearly all the precursor chemicals that are needed to

Punjab Cong MLA Khaira taken into police custody in 2015 drugs case

Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira was taken into custody by the Punjab Police in connection with a 2015 drugs case on Thursday morning, family members of the legislator claimed. However, there was no official word on Khaira being taken into police custody. A family member of the Congress MLA went live on Facebook showing that a team of Punjab Police has reached their residence to apprehend Khaira. In the video, Khaira could be seen arguing with the police team and asking them to show him the arrest warrant. The Bholath legislator could also be seen asking for the identity of the police officers who were part of the raiding team. When Khaira asked the team where he was being taken, a police official told him that he was being taken to Jalalabad in Fazilka. Slamming the Bhagwant Mann government, the Congress MLA claimed that he was being apprehended in a fake case and that "jungle raj" was prevailing in the state. The drugs case was registered in March 2015 at Jalalabad in Fazilka.

Mexican president wants to meet with Biden on migration, drug trafficking

Mexico's top diplomat Alicia Brcena has said that President Andrs Manuel Lpez Obrador wants to travel to Washington D.C. in early November to meet with US President Joe Biden about immigration, development aid and drug trafficking. The statement comes after a surge in migrants moving through Mexico forced the closure of some US-Mexico border crossings and led Mexico's largest railway company to halt about 60 train runs because so many migrants were hopping aboard freight cars. Most appear to be Venezuelans, and many said they had crossed through the jungle-clad Darien Gap that connects Colombia and Panama. Brcena told a news conference in New York Friday that migrant shelters in Ciudad Juarez, across from El Paso, Texas, are 95 per cent full and that the Mexican government is "very worried" about the border closures and the migrant surge, especially given Mexico's rocky relationship with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. In the past, Abbott has tightened border truck inspections and strung a

Weekend Bites: India-Canada-Khalistan, women's Bill, and drugs on drones

In which we munch over the week's platter of news and views