Indian Gov To Build New R&D Center For Bulk Drugs

A new center called National Centre for Research & Development in Bulk Drug (NCRDBD) will be set up at the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) in Hyderabad, India to focus on developing new technologies and bolstering the country’s bulk drug supply.

With almost 2,500 bulk drugs manufacturing sites, the bulk drugs sector is one of the most important segments of the India pharma sector. The industry has seen a cumulative annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17 percent in the last three years but has suffered an 18 percent decline in imports in the same period, indicating a growing reliance on international supply. A trend of shifting R&D operations to South East Asian countries such as Korea and Singapore has also been observed in 2013 and is being attributed to “red tapism” by the government. India already sources most of its active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) from China.

“The centre is to be set up to urgently address these concerns and make the industry cost competitive. In the bulk drug industry, the reduced processes and improved technology can help in reducing the cost significantly,” remarked an official from the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers in India.

The new Center will offer eco-friendly and competitive technologies to provide centralized research and consulting services. The NCRDBD will primarily cater to the pharmaceutical industry’s small and medium companies since these typically are unable to afford to fund their own R&D facilities. The Center will be built for 52 crore rupees and will be funded with more than 7 crore rupees for five years.

While the country is well known for producing generic drugs, a lack of interest in high risk drug discovery recently motivated the Indian Pharmaceutical Association to petition the government to prioritize incentive policies for innovation and drug discovery. The focus on R&D is increasing, according to an interview last year with analyst Adefemi Adenuga of GlobalData Healthcare. Adenuga said that pharmaceutical firms such as Ranbaxy, Dr. Reddy’s, and Lupin have increased their investments in R&D, leading to breakthroughs in drug discovery as well.