Page 19 - IMDR JOURNAL 2020-21

IMDR’s Journal of Management Development and Research 2020-21

of some key ingredients for antibiotics and vitamins scope for private business in government sectors,
as they are not manufactured in India. Government increasing FDI in defence sector; and support for
of India is now encouraging the manufacturing of solar manufacturers.Pharma is a key sector which
basic ingredients for these drugs. can strengthen the economic position of the country.
The pharmaceutical industry in India is the
world’s third largest drug producer by volume and The Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme:
the country’s market manufactures 60 percent of The Government of India has announced the PLI
vaccines globally (Dadhich, 2020). India is a major scheme. Production-Linked Incentive or PLI scheme
supplier of affordable generic drugs to the global aims to give companies incentives on incremental
market and has more than two hundred US Food sales from products manufactured in domestic units.
and Drug Administration and UK Medicine and The scheme
Healthcare products Regulatory Agency certified • Invites foreign companies to set up units in
plants. The Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients India
(APIs) which are the key ingredients for many • Aims to encourage local companies to set up
generic drugs are sourced from India. This accounts and expand existing manufacturing units
for almost thirty per cent of the generic APIs used • Generate more employment and cut down the
in the US. Although this is true, Indian pharma country’s reliance on imports from other
industry is majorly dependent upon APIs from countries
China for medicine formulation production. India is
dependent for almost seventy per cent of the APIs Indian Goods Our Pride:
and like India many other countries also looked A new campaign, Indian Goods-Our Pride, has
up to China API production, making China, a top been launched by the Confederation of All India
global producer and exporter for APIs. Dependency Traders (CAIT), consisting of 60 million traders
of Indian Pharmaceutical Industry on China across the world. The aim is boycott of Chinese
produced APIs was exposed after the massive goods. Imports can be reduced because of immense
pandemic of Covid-19. This dependency of Indian patriotic reactions, but,due to business constraints,
Pharmaceutical industry on Chinese APIs is a manufacturers would still be reluctant to make any
biggest concern of current times. kind of improvement.
The current API units need to be used effectively.
Pandemic According to a McKinsey survey, the higher burden
The pandemic brought forth the fact that India of diseases will be the driving factors for increasing
depends on imports of vital medical devices. For the domestic market in India. Another reason for
manufacturing industries, this period has been a stimulating the local production of APIs is the
challenging time and highlights the urgency for country’s rapidly growing population.
India to become self-reliant. During the pandemic
and the lock down the mind set of consumers / end Govt approves ₹15,000 cr to pharma sector to
users has adapted to trying out local / alternate. boost local drug production

Aatma Nirbhar Bharat and Pharma Industry Under the new scheme, the government approved
‘Aatma Nirbhar Bharat’ was the call given by ₹15,000 crore financial outlay over five-year period
Hon. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for to the Pharmaceutical sector to incentivize the
self-reliance in strategic sectors. The objectives global and domestic players to engage in high value
were attaining higher GDP and Manufacturing in production of medical drugs
India for the world. Our government is working Countries are ready to invest in the supply of
relentlessly towards promoting self-reliance. The COVID-19 vaccines and medical devices in the Indian
government has announced total of three Aatma market, which should be seen as an opportunity
Nirbhar Bharat packages worth ₹29.87 lakh crore. for India to become truly Aatma Nirbhar in the
As part of the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat package, pharmaceutical field.
numerous government decisions have taken place Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal
such as changing definition of MSMEs, boosting has encouraged the pharmaceutical industry to keep

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