The Confederation of Indian Pharmaceutical Industries (CIPI), the apex body of SSI pharma units in India, is planning to arrange a meeting of its members with the top brass of health ministry to air their grievances related to the implementation of Schedule M.

The office bearers of CIPI are likely to meet the new union minister for health & family welfare and other top level officials including the drug controller general of India (DCGI) and health secretary in New Delhi next week for extending invitation to a seminar on Schedule M planned by CIPI at New Delhi.

CIPI will also give a memorandum to the minister highlighting the consequences related to the current deadline for implementing Schedule M norms by December 31, 2004.

T.S Jaishankar, chairman of CIPI told Pharmbiz that the seminar or workshop which would be planned in accordance with the availability of the minister and officials, would act as a platform for the members of CIPI from various states to directly interact with the minister and officials on the practical difficulties involved in adhering to the Schedule M norms within the next seven months.

"We hope the minister and officials would give us a patient hearing on our genuine concerns and practical realities. Then let them decide whether the country requires SSI pharmaceutical units or not in future," said Jaishankar. He said that CIPI was not against modernisation of SSI units in accordance with world standards, but was only asking for some more time to comply with the rules.

"Some quarters have been trying to highlight that SSI pharma companies were not needed for India. They say closure of 4000 odd SSI units will never have an impact on the Indian drug industry as more than 80 per cent of the drug production in the country is met by less than 100 big companies. The lobbies, which support this kind of propaganda, also try to convey the SSIs are against Schedule M, which is not true at all. We are not demanding to scrap the rules. Our survival involves a lot of social and ethical factors," noted Jaishankar.

He said the strategy of CIPI would be to impress the authorities on their genuine problems related to the rules, rather than crying for extension of the deadline on Schedule M.