Gujarat occupies a very important place in the pharma sector, as it homes many top pharma companies in the country and thus reigns only second to Maharashtra, which is considered as the pharmaceutical hub of the country.

At present, it is estimated that nearly 30 to 40 per cent of the country's total pharma manufacturing activities originate from Gujarat. Having more than 900  formulation and API  units in  Gujarat, the pharma companies both large as well as the small -scale enterprises have played a major role in helping the state to become  a hot spot for manufacturers.

The state occupies an important position in the country's  map as a major contributor to  the national exchequer through its established domestic and export business. Experts point out that almost 20 per cent of the drugs manufactured in Gujarat are exported to the regulated and other markets due to the high quality of the medicines that are manufactured in the state.

Dr H G Koshia, commissioner, Gujarat FDCA point out that state holds a  leadership position in lot of industry, pharma being one which occupies an important place  as it deals with the healthcare needs of the people. The pharma industry  started its stint with  the establishment of Alembic in the year 1907 and has come along a long way since then. Today almost all the top pharma companies from India have their presence in this state making it an ideal destination for drug manufacturers.

Not only Indian but even multinational giants are scouting to set up their base in India. Recently pharmaceutical giant Abbott Laboratories announced its plan to enter Gujarat through its subsidiary Abbott India with a plant at Jhagadia near Bharuch. The investment on the proposed plant, which will manufacture  nutraceutical products, is estimated to be around Rs 360 crore, informed a senior state government official.

Short while before that, Israel's Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (TPI) also declared its intention to enter Gujarat through a joint venture (JV) with US-based Proctor & Gamble (P&G). The company will be setting up a Rs 250 crore manufacturing facility at Sanand to make over-the-counter (OTC) drugs.

Koshia informed that Gujarat played an important role during the period of therapeutic revolution in the country.

Aiming high
Gujarat pharmaceutical industry has witnessed consistent, sustained growth and development as it has been playing a major role not only in the sphere of production of drugs and pharmaceuticals, thus catering to the growing domestic demand, but also in earning valuable foreign exchange.

Says Dr R S Joshi, executive secretary, IDMA GSB, "Gujarat boasts of contributing  45 per cent to the overall Indian pharmaceutical output and 30 per cent of pharmaceutical exports. The pharmaceutical sector employs about 75,000 people in the state. With inherent competitive advantages, Gujarat is set to capture emerging global opportunities to become a pharmaceutical hub."

Some of the top leading Gujarat based pharma companies in the state having net sales above Rs 100 crore are Sun Pharmaceuticals, Cadila Healthcare, Torrent Pharmaceuticals, Alembic Pharmaceuticals, Dishman Pharmaceuticals, Claris Lifesciences, Lyka Labs, Themis Medicare, Lincoln Pharmaceuticals and India Gelatine and Chemicals.

Besides, these there are several other pharma companies like Sun Pharma Advance Research, Ambalal Sarabhai Enterprise, Core Healthcare, Alkem Laboratories, Cadial Pharma, Intas Pharmaceutical, Kamron Laboratories, etc. who are  progressing well in the state.

According to A D Bhimani, vice president-projects, Intas Pharmaceutical,   Gujarat government is very pro-active in supporting ideas that lead to development of the industry. But it is the drug regulatory  system adopted in the state that further propels and encourages the industry to grow and establish a niche for itself.

Gujarat is also home to India's leading companies like Ranbaxy, Glenmark, IPCA, Lupin, J B Chemicals, Cipla, Wockhardt, Dr Reddy's Laboratories etc who have also established their manufacturing units in Gujarat. Even the small-scale enterprises (SME's) are developing superior capabilities   compared to  their counterparts in  others states .  This can be credited to the strict implementation of Schedule M norms in Gujarat by the drug regulatory system which ensures that all the manufacturing units in the state comply with  the norms. This has enabled several small-scale units to contribute  to the pharma growth story of  India.

Vibrancy, the calling card of Gujarat
It is not only the pharma industry that has been smitten by  the vibrancy of Gujarat, the magnetic charm of the state has attracted many other healthcare related sectors as well. The credit for this achievement goes to the state government for coming out with pro industry initiatives to propel the growth of the industry by offering  subsidies and  other helps.

According to D L Pandya who is the programme co-ordinator of the National Biomedical Engineering Society, Gujarat is the largest contributor to  the high tech medical devices sector of the country, wherein it enjoys the leadership position in manufacturing high tech medical devices like cardiac stents with 70 to 80 per cent market share coming just from Gujarat alone.

“Gujarat has grown and established itself as the market leader in manufacturing high quality products in drugs or medical devices sector, a feat which is highly commendable. We are very happy with the steps  taken by the  Government which  will  attract more companies to the state. Overall the government has proved that  it  provides the right environment for businesses to prosper” Pandya states.

However he pointed  that initiatives from the state government is not enough and  the centre should also pitch in the  support to the industry.

Gujarat, particularly Ahmedabad has been a centre for CROs since the late 80s when Quintiles started from Ahmedabad and then a few more indigenous CROs also started from Ahmedabad. This is mainly due to  the better quality of life , affordable  cost of living and availability of good infrastructure. With a  large number of pharmaceutical companies  and the and  the presence of a substantial number of medical and pharmacy colleges , it is surely an all rounder in the healthcare sector.

The efforts of the state is even recognised at the international level as well. Fortune International magazine had selected Ahmedabad as one of the top 15 business friendly cities in the world . This makes Gujarat a viable destination for setting up business as most of the companies opine  that the business environment  is very congenial  in  the state.

Focus area
In spite of having a very pro -active government and policies ,there are certain grey areas that needs to be addressed by the government. Highlighting the issues and problems that needs urgent government attention , the Gujarat Ayurvedic Aushadh Manufacturers Association (GAAMA) stressed that the government should identify key challenges that are affecting the market players as well as the  factors that could  propel the market forward .

Jaman Malaviya, vice president, of GAAMA asserts that when it comes to the ayurveda, the government approach had been a little muted and leaden especially at the central level. He stressed that there is an urgent  need to make efforts to streamline their approach towards fulfilling the demands of the ASU industry more ethically so that the traditional industry can also grow like the pharma industry.

He suggested  that the department of ayush should also work pro -actively for the the industry as the Chines government is doing for their traditional industry. “Today though the government is taking steps to boost  the industry that have been ignored since long, we feel that the efforts are not enough. More steps are needed to  drive the industry's  growth. Most importantly the government needs to take action to create a brand name for the industry by strengthening the regulatory set-up after discussions with the stakeholders.”

He further explained that only by understanding the industry and their regulatory requirements should the government take decisions. One of the common point on which all the organisations and associations agree on is the lack of interest in the government in involving the industry in the decision- making process.

However, Self-Employed Women's Association of India (SEWA), a trade union for poor, self-employed women workers in Gujarat, claim that over the years there have been a noticeable change in the government's approach in dealing with healthcare issues.

According to Mittal Shah, co-ordinator, social security, SEWA, “They have realised that healthcare is something that cannot be put on hold any longer. The development and growth of any country depends upon the health of the country as well. We have noticed that the government has substantially increased the spend on the health care needs and have adopted a more organised strategy to address various health care issues in the state as well as across the country.”

Sewa constantly works with different government agencies in the state by collaborating with them to improve the healthcare system. For better implementation  of this initiative, Shah suggested that the government should try to adopt a more progressive approach by contracting out the work for  implementing the programmes and schemes to  NGO's and other organisations.