Question : Licence for Medicines

Will the Minister of CHEMICALS AND FERTILIZERS be pleased to state:

(a) the number of new medicines for which licences had been issued along with the number of such medicines launched in the market during each of the last four years and the current year;
(b) whether different companies are manufacturing a number of medicines formulated with the same salt with a wide variability in prices and if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether the Government has conducted any investigation to find out if the owners of such companies belong to the same family;
(d) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and
(e) the details of the steps being taken by the Government to check such practices and regulate the prices of expensive medicines?

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS; MINISTRY OF SHIPPING AND MINISTRY OF CHEMICALS AND FERTILIZERS (SHRI MANSUKH L. MANDAVIYA)

(a): As per information received from Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), the details of number of permissions granted by CDSCO to manufacture/ import new drugs during last 4 years and current year are as under:

Year Number of Permission
2014 254
2015 172
2016 194
2017 212
2018 (as on 23.07.2018) 180
Total 1012


(b): The prices of individual medicines/ individual brands are fixed by companies according to their own marketing strategies. However, in case of essential medicines/scheduled drugs, Government fixes a ceiling price and each manufacturer has to keep the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) within that ceiling price.

(c) & (d): No, Madam. Family wise ownership data of companies are not maintained.

(e): As an ongoing process National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), monitors the prices of both scheduled and non-scheduled medicines on regular basis to check overcharging by pharmaceutical companies. Whenever companies are found to be overcharging the consumer in sale of medicines, NPPA issues notices to the companies.
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