Andhra Pradesh government is likely to take a decision on the fate of 294 fixed dose combinations (FDCs) drugs before the end of this month, according to official sources.
Sources told Pharmabiz that Minister for Hospitals Vanama Venkateswara Rao had called the officials of the Health Services and the Andhra Pradesh Drug Administration for a meeting on December 31 to take a decision on the FDC issue. The officials of the Drug Administration, who had held a series of meetings with the representatives of the pharmaceutical industry, sent the representations they received to the Minister for taking a final decision.
The representatives of the industry exerted pressure on the officials to relax the drive to remove the FDCs from the market. The officials made it clear to the representatives that the stay order granted by the Chennai High Court was not "binding" on them because the court has no jurisdiction over the State. The representatives of the pharmaceutical industry, who came from outside the State, reportedly insisted that the State Drug Administration should honour the Chennai High Court order but in vain.
The officials of the State Health Department, when contacted, said that the State government was determined to implement the orders of the Drug Control General of India (DCGI). It led to the State Drug Control Administration acting tough and recalled the FDCs worth about Rs 40 crore from the market. Most of the FDCs, which were being sold in the State, were manufactured by the companies outside the State. Of the total drugs recalled, not more than Rs 1 crore worth of FDCs were from the State, the officials felt.