Making Medicines in India

The Department of Pharmaceuticals had gone into a huddle as early as February this year when India had only three confirmed cases of Covid-19. A committee of inter-ministerial experts and importers and manufacturers of medicines met every day to keep a watch on happenings in China. Their worry was not just the spread of the disease. They were also concerned about the lockdown in China and its impact on supply of key raw materials used to make medicines in India.

Department officials later informed the parliamentary standing committee on chemicals and fertilisers chaired by Kanimozhi Karunanidhi on February 28 that their concern was that India was “unfortunately” dependent on China for 58 types of medicine raw materials — active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs or bulk drugs), key starting materials (KSM) and drug intermediates (DI). The country’s stocks of APIs and finished goods (medicines in tablet, capsule, liquid form, etc) would have lasted another three-four months, not more. “Most of our APIs are coming from China. There are not many other sources. The committee is reviewing