Pharmaceutical industry in India has emerged as one of the major export earners for the country over the last five years. More than one third of its production of Rs 40,000 crore is being exported to more than 100 countries with the US and Europe remaining as two significant export destinations. No industry segment in the chemicals sector has achieved this distinction in such a short span. With the proven ability of Indian pharmaceutical producers in generics and contract manufacturing and research, the country is going to play a significant role in world pharmaceutical industry in the years to come. The decision of the government to place pharmaceuticals as one of the thrust areas for export is with this consideration. The whole idea behind establishing a separate export promotion council for pharmaceuticals is with this objective. But the commerce ministry bungled from the very beginning and it is in a very serious mess today. There is a virtual split amongst the pharmaceutical exporters with half of them with Pharmexcil and the other half with the Chemexcil, the parent export promotion council. At the time of formation of Pharmexcil, the commerce ministry took a stand that pharmaceutical exporters have the option to remain either with Chemexcil or with Pharmexcil and can obtain their Registration Cum Membership Certificate from any of these bodies. By allowing this, the commerce ministry committed a fundamental mistake of creating two authorities for one class of exporters. Again last month DGFT came with another notification clarifying that exporters of drugs and pharmaceuticals should get RCMC only from Pharmexcil. The latest government move has expectedly angered a group in the Chemexcil which has been fighting against the formation of a separate export promotion council for pharmaceuticals. Now, the Chemexcil chairman is not in a mood to accept this directive and discontinue the Pharma Panel which according to him has 2100 pharmaceutical exporters as members. These members have already renewed their membership up to March 2005 and their RCMC is valid for five years. The basic issue here is the tussle between the big and the small. Pharmexcil has mostly big pharmaceutical exporters as members whereas the exporters remaining with Chemexcil are largely small ones. The leaders of the pharma exporters still with Chemexcil strongly feel that the interests of small exporters will not be taken care of by Pharmexcil. If that impression is formed over a period time and if it is true then they have a legitimate reason to grumble. In that case, the government has to first address this issue thoroughly before it entrusts the whole promotional activities with Pharmexcil.