The Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) is reworking on several of its failed financial assistance schemes, turned down by the planning commission during the 11th Plan period, to be submitted to the commission again for the 12th Plan period which starts from next year.
According to sources, some of the schemes the DoP is reworking to be submitted again to the planning commission for its nod for the 12th Five Year Plan included its ambitious Pharmaceutical Technology Upgradation Assistance Scheme (PTUAS), a scheme to extend the CLCSS scheme for the upgradation of laboratories as per the GLP norms, Rs.275-crore proposal for constructing GLP compliant Labs in clusters at different parts of the country, Rs.300 crore cluster development programme for small and medium level pharma companies to enhance quality, productivity and innovative capabilities, Rs.100 crore training centre to cater to the industry in developing regulatory and documentation skills, etc.
Though the DoP had submitted detailed proposals for all these schemes during the 11th Plan period, the schemes could not find favour with the commission due to several reasons.
To assist the medium pharma enterprises in the country for the technological upgradation of their units to comply with WHO-GMP, US FDA, UK MHRA and other international norms, the DoP was to launch the PTUAS scheme from July 1, 2010. Under the scheme, the DoP was to provide an interest subsidy of five per cent on loans availed for such purposes, amounting upto a project cost or loan amount of Rs.10 crore. But the scheme fell through, as the proposal is still stuck with the commission.
Likewise, the DoP is reworking on the Rs.300 crore cluster development programme for small and medium level pharma companies to enhance quality, productivity and innovative capabilities, during the next five year plan. Though many of the elements of this scheme have been attempted separately during the last few years, nothing has worked out concretely so far. Hence the DoP wants to launch it as a central scheme titled Cluster Development Programme-Pharma Sector (CDS-PS) during the next Plan period.
Besides, the DoP is reworking on the Rs.275-crore proposal for constructing GLP compliant Labs in clusters at different parts of the country which it had formulated to assist the pharma companies to comply the Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) that has become mandatory in the country from November 1, 2010.
Another proposal on which the DoP is reworking on is the scheme to extend the Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme (CLCSS) to upgrade the SSI units to meet the GLP norms.