The Pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil) will soon start two more regional centres at Ahemedabad and Chennai to help drug exporters in south and west of India.
Talking to Pharmabiz at a press meet in connection with the inauguration of the new Pharmexcil office at Worli in Mumbai, D.B. Mody, chairman and Dr. P.V. Appaji, executive director, Pharmexcil said that the two offices would commence operations within three months. The buildings have been identified and Pharmexcil is in the process of setting up requisite infrastructure. At present Pharmexcil have two regional offices at Mumbai and Delhi, apart from its full-fledged headquarters in Hyderabad.
They said that Pharmexcil organised trade delegations to Tunisia under Focus Africa (WANA) countries, Indian pharma mission to US, Chile, Tajikistan and trade delegations to Libya and Sudan, Georgia, Belarus and Azerbaijan. Similar delegations have been planned to Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania during January-February, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and Bahamas during February and Australia and New Zealand during March 2006. Pharmexcil is also planning to participate in various international exhibitions and will arrange for Pharmexcil pavilions. Apart from this, Pharmexcil has conducted seminars at Delhi, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, and is planning such events in Mumbai, Ahemedabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh before the end of this financial year. Another major achievement of Pharmexcil was the ASEAN, AFRICA and GCC conference held in Hyderabad during IPC, wherein more than 650 key delegates, including regulatory officials, attended the conference.
Mody said, "Though Pharmexcil started only one and a half year back, it has emerged as one of the most important government arm to help the pharma exporters in the country."
The leading pharma associations, IPA, OPPI, IDMA and BDMA had given an interest free loan of Rs 2, 50,000 each as start up capital, which Pharmexcil has already paid back. The Central Government also had given a grant of Rs 3 crore.
Pharmexcil has upgraded its website into an interactive mode with updated information to the exporters from five ministries connected with the industry. Now Pharmexcil gives country reports on about 20 to 25 countries with elaborate data and drug registration procedures. Pharmexcil has already entered into trade development agreements and MoUs with Korea, Tunisia, Philippines, Chile etc. Pharmexcil will also act as the co-ordinating agency for training regulatory officials from Nigeria and Ghana, to be held at NIPER, Chandigarh, according to Mody.