As many as eight proposals of foreign direct investment for a total amount of Rs.1842.55 crore had been cleared in the brownfield pharmaceutical sector in the month of August, the Parliament was informed.

The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) meeting held on August 24, approved these brownfield proposals of FDI, Minister of State in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers Srikant Kumar Jena told Loksabha on Thursday.

The proposals cleared were from Ordain Health Care Global Pvt. Ltd., Chennai (Rs.58.85 cr), Sutures India Pvt. Ltd., Bangalore (Rs.200 cr), Arch Pharmalabs Ltd., Mumbai (Rs.372.36 cr), B Braun Singapore Pte Ltd., Singapore (Rs.248.40 cr), Stellence Pharmascience Pvt. Ltd., Bangalore (Rs.100 cr), Pfizer Ltd., Mumbai (Rs.800 cr), Vyome Biosciences Pvt. Ltd., Delhi (Rs.12.50 cr) and Zim Laboratories Ltd., Nagpur (Rs.50.44 cr), the minister disclosed.

The proposals are learnt to have got through with some riders. The FIPB had specified that the quantitative level of NLEM (National List of Essential Medicines) drugs production annually at the time of induction of foreign investment should be maintained at that level for the next five years.

It was also specified that the research and development (R&D) expenses annually incurred by the investee company at the highest level in the three preceding years to induction of foreign investment will be maintained in value terms annually over the next five years, post-induction of FDI and provide the information in this regard to the administrative ministries concerned.

The companies were also asked to provide to the administrative ministries complete information pertaining to transfer of technology, if any, along with induction of foreign investment into the investee company.