A day after the former promoters of Ranbaxy denied allegations made by Japanese pharma major Daiichi Sankyo, that it was not given information on an ongoing investigation by the United States Federal Drug Administration (FDA), public health activists in India said this could be another attempt by multinational giants to belittle Indian companies.
The FDA has also issued an import alert claiming sufficient evidence to believe that the quality of drugs produced at Wockhardt’s plant at Aurangabad in Maharashtra had been compromised.
In response to these developments, the convenor of Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, B. Ekbal, said attempts were being made by multinational drug companies to belittle Indian drug-makers engaged in generic drug trade. Calling India the pharmacy of Third World countries, he said, “Though Ranbaxy is no more an Indian company, the targeting of Indian companies is part of a strategy.” Health sector analysts also feel that the recent developments could be seen as an attempt to put pressure on the FDA.
“The developments may further delay the approval of several generic medicines. There may be efforts to put pressure on the FDA to further strengthen their regulatory framework towards Indian companies and medicines,” said Sujay Shetty, India leader for the pharma & life sciences vertical at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
However, some experts feel that India, too, needs to strengthen its regulatory framework. T. Sunderaraman, Executive Director of National Health Systems Resource Centre, said that rather than focusing on the market abroad, Indian companies should try to build a healthy domestic market. “Indian companies are not focussing on the healthcare needs of the country. The whole model we have developed is to build an export-oriented market,” he said.