Indian pharmaceutical companies have an edge over drug producers of other countries in conducting cost-effective clinical trials and therefore Indian companies must tap the opportunities in clinical development instead of out licensing to overseas players in the coming years, according to Dr K Anji Reddy, founder and chairman of Dr Reddy's Laboratories.

Talking to newsmen after Conferences Advisory Board of Chemtech Foundation at Hyderabad, he said, "India has made lot of progress in the production of bulk drugs, one out of every three ANDAs filed in the US are from India and the Indian pharmaceutical companies are making a mark in the drug discovery arena. If companies can reduce the cost of clinical development, they can spearhead from discovery to molecule to market and if drugs can be developed at 1/10th of the cost, India and other developing nations can get affordable drugs."

Chemtech is organizing Pharma World Expo and Biotech World Expo-2005 at Mumbai from February 8 to 11, 2005.

Out licensing of molecules by Indian companies are going to get reduced in the years to come, Dr Reddy opined. For instance, DRL, which had been out licensing molecules to big pharmaceutical companies earlier as it lacked funds for carrying out clinical trials on its own, has stopped out licensing three years ago. There are many disadvantages in out licensing molecules, he added.

Meanwhile, DRL is planning to start drug discovery research in China in a couple of years and is keen on stepping up drug discovery efforts in India and China in the coming years. The countries are part of the company's strategic drug development programme, he informed.