The current drug price control order was notified almost 12 years ago. There are just 74 drugs and their formulations under the Drug Price Control Order, 1995. Manufacture and marketing of many drugs like chloroquin phosphate, penicillin G, doxycycline, vitamin A, etc. have been discontinued subsequently by pharmaceutical companies stating lower profitability. At the same time a number of new drugs were approved by Drug Controller General of India for marketing in the country during these 12 years. Although many of them are widely prescribed and used by common man for diseases such as cardiovascular problems, cancer, diabetic and cholesterol, all of them remains outside price control. Thus, there are in all 500 or more drugs which are currently outside price control. National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority has been rather passive in monitoring prices of decontrolled formulations for some time despite their unjustified price hikes by companies. The chemicals ministry has been receiving a number of complaints about such price hikes for some time. One recent case is that of albendazole, a drug widely prescribed for worm infestation. Its retail prices are several times more than its actual manufacturing costs. NPPA has now recommended inclusion of the drug under price control in view of its mass consumption. The Authority has recently started monitoring prices of non-scheduled formulations on a regular basis if the price hikes effected by pharma companies exceed 10 per cent in a year. Companies are supposed to be shortlisted for action if they are found to be raising price of a non-scheduled formulation by more than 10 per cent during 12 months period. The manufacturers are expected to be asked to furnish reasons for such price hikes and will be directed to bring down the prices voluntarily if such hikes are found unreasonable. Although price discipline is most wanted in pharmaceutical products, excessive pricing and large scale price violations are more taking place in this sector than any other industries in the country. Detection of such overcharging and unfair trade practices is a very slow process as NPPA does not have a state wise or region wise price monitoring machinery. By the time, NPPA finds a price violation or excessive profiteering in a product, patients might have been already fleeced for several months. Since its inception in 1997, NPPA has raised a total demand of Rs 1427.37 crores for recovery from pharma companies towards overcharging of drugs in 425 cases as on July 31, 2007. It has recovered just Rs 100.43 crores so far from these defaulting companies. The task of recovering the overcharged amounts is not going to be an easy one for NPPA. However, the government decision to set up an enforcement wing in NPPA should greatly help to detect and check excessive price hikes of decontrolled drugs by pharmaceutical firms in time.