Out of nearly 20 new schemes prepared and mooted by the Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) during the last three years for implementation during the current Plan period, most of them could not take off yet with the Planning Commission refusing to grant in-principle approvals and those approved also still waiting in the wings. This has its inevitable result that the Plan outlay and utilisation have been hit badly at the cost of the pharma industry.

According to the available information, the schemes failed to get nod from the Planning Commission on varied grounds from non-feasibility to the pending on the pharmaceutical policy. But the end result was that the allocation proposed for the new schemes of the 11th Plan has been be hit badly and in turn the industry was the net loser.

The new initiatives proposed by the Department included i) Venture capital fund for innovative R&D in Pharmaceuticals Grant in aid/soft loan; ii) New Schemes of "Star Pharma Colleges" for strengthening of pharma education and training at undergraduate level; iii) Critical assistance for WHO prequalification for Pharma CPSU/R&D; iv) New Schemes of strengthening of NPPA; v) Project proposal for setting up of GLP complied Biological Laboratory; vi) Project proposal for setting up of GLP complied Chemicals Laboratory; vii) Project proposal for setting up of GLP complied Large Animal Facility; viii) Project proposal for inviting nominations for National Pharma Award for excellence in pharmaceutical research; ix) Project proposal for Extra Mural Funding in Pharmaceutical Research; x) Generic Drug Campaign Scheme; xi) Upgradation to WHO-GMP production standards and support to State PSEs; and xii) Rajiv Gandhi Aushadhiya Yojana.

"These were sent for in-principle approval of the Planning Commission. However, the Planning Commission has conveyed approval in case of schemes only at Sr.Nos. (iii), (v), (vi), (vii), & (x) on which further action has been initiated by the Department for implementation of the schemes," official sources said. Out of the five new schemes for the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority, only one got the approval from the Planning Commission as others were linked to the Pharmaceutical Policy.

As the result of this, the allocation for the new schemes remained far short of the original plan in the first three years of the Plan period so far. Though a total of Rs.1396.17 crore was earmarked for the Plan period, only Rs.472.69 crore has been allocated for the department in the first four years. The final year should now utilise an amount of Rs.923.48 crore, if allocated and it seems to be impossible too. An amount of Rs.1068 crore was the original Plan allocation for the new schemes, but only Rs.32 crore was the revised allocation for 2007-08 and Rs.63.91 crore was for the 2008-09. Against the budget allocation of Rs.114.15 crore, only Rs.65.05 crore was given in the revised estimates for the year of 2009-10. The BE allocation for the current year is Rs.114 crore, and yet to be seen how much it will go down in the RE stage. Thus only Rs.160.96 crore came as Plan outlay in the first three years, all because of the non-implementation of the new schemes either due to the lacklustre moves by the Department or by the lethargic approach by the Planning Commission.

Five schemes were proposed to strengthen the NPPA with a total expected allocation of Rs.60 crore, but nothing was spent in the first two years and during the third year, Rs.0.60 crore was allocated as only one of the five schemes got the approval.

Apart from this, the new scheme of critical assistance for WHO pre-qualification for Pharma PSUs and R&D, had an initial allocation of Rs.75 crore. As the scheme got the nod from the Plan panel, so far Rs.21 crore has been allocated in three years and the allocation for the current year is Rs.14 crore.

The approach of the Planning Commission in sanctioning the projects and the apathetic response of the pharma department in utilising even the allocated amount have came in for sharp criticism by the Parliamentary Standing Committee in its report on the demands and grants while the observers in the industry were of the view that the department may have failed to push the proposals with right earnest.