The Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil), after setting up its regional offices in Mumbai and Delhi, is in advanced stage of operations to set up its third regional office at Ahmedabad, in order to support the increasing export activities of the stakeholders in Gujarat.
Following a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Pharmexcil and the Industry Department under Government of Gujarat last year, the council has recently identified a premise at Ahmedabad to set up its office. The Gujarat government is considering the request to allocate the place for Pharmexcil and the decision is expected to be out within two weeks, according to Pharmexcil officials.
"Setting up an office in Ahmedabad has been decided after taking various factors into consideration, including the clear concentration of pharma industry in the state, the substantial exports taking place from Gujarat etc. Also, Chemexcil has an office in the state. The project to establish the office in Ahmedabad is in advanced stage," said P V Appaji, executive director, Pharmexcil. The council will commence operations within three months time, once the clearance is provided by the Government of Gujarat.
The move to set up office at Gujarat comes as the part of the council's plans to set up its regional centres in various parts of the country. "We have also plans in mind to commence our offices in cities like Bangalore, Chennai and Madhya Pradesh. But as a comparatively new organisation, we have our constraints to initiate the projects in a short time span," added Appaji.
The file is currently under consideration of the Secretariat of Government of Gujarat and is expected to be cleared soon, averred an official from Gujarat Food and Drugs Control Administration (FDCA). The council can provide immense support to the pharmaceutical companies in Gujarat, when more and more stakeholders are looking at export opportunities for growth. "There are almost 165 companies complied with WHO's GMP in the state. In last few years, we feel that the exports from the state are growing at a higher rate. The setting up of pharmexcil will help the small and medium companies to find better space in exports business," added an FDCA source.
The industry has also echoed the voice of administration by pointing out that with the pressure from the nearby tax exempted states increased, the pharma industry in Gujarat has been relying more on exports business for growth. "In the last three years, more than 50 per cent of the pharmaceutical players in the state have established their exports operations for growth. However, we are expecting data on the total size of exports and its growth rate in the state to be available by the end of this year," said Dr R S Joshi, executive secretary, Indian Drug Manufacturers Association (IDMA) Gujarat State Board.
The Pharmexcil regional office will offer immediate support and guidance for the companies in Gujarat for exports and will assist them to go through export and registration procedures. The council will also provide exports data, circulars from Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) and Pharmexcil, country reports and will organise programmes for companies focusing on exports business. However, the council spokesperson refused to reveal about the funds allocated for setting up of new office, as the project is yet to be finalised.