The total production and sales turnover from the central public sector pharma undertakings including the ailing Indian Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Ltd (IDPL) have increased marginally during the last financial year, according to the data with the Pharmaceutical Department.

The total production in the three CPUs - IDPL, Hindustan Antibiotics Ltd (HAL), Bengal Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd (BCPL)-and their joint ventures went up from Rs 539.49 crore during 2007-08 to Rs 641.79 crore during 2008-09, as per the data compiled by the department. The other two public sector units -- Bengal Immunity Ltd (BIL), and Smith Stanistreet Pharmaceuticals Ltd (SSPL) - are still without production.

The total sales from the PSU firms went up from Rs 507.77 crore in 2007-08 to Rs 612.42 crore in 2008-09. The combined sales stood at a meagre Rs 289.14 crore while production was worth Rs 340.24 crore during 2006-07, before the Centre launched aggressive moves to pull them out of the red.

Though the proposed revival package for IDPL was still pending, the company's performance improved during the last year, as per the data. The total production in the company units picked up from Rs 62.13 crore of 2007-08 to Rs 93.25 crore last year. The sales turnover went up from Rs 56.70 crore to Rs 85.14 crore during the period. A new cephalosporin plant at the cost of Rs 13 crore was finished last year at its Gurgoan premises.

"For Muzzafarpur (Bihar) and Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh), fresh initiatives have been taken for re-starting these plants and also to generate revenue from the non-performing assets (NPAs). Development of plant/ area through joint venture or public private partnership mode is being explored," the report said.

In the case of HAL, production went up from Rs 119.84 crore in 2007-08 to Rs 141.50 crore during the last fiscal while sales picked up from Rs 109.48 crore to Rs 141.08 crore during the same period. The government has sanctioned Rs 10.00 crore during the year 2008-09 to HAL to undertake WHO-GMP compliance of its plants.

The total production at Bengal Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals, picked up from Rs 55.68 crore of 2007-08 to Rs 89.50 during the last year while sales improved from Rs 51.14 crore to Rs 85.20 crore during the same period. The efforts are still on to revive the other two closed CPUs --Bengal Immunity Ltd and the SSCL, according to the data.

Rajasthan Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Ltd, a joint venture between IDPL and Rajasthan Industrial Development and Investment Corporation (RIICO), however, reported a less encouraging performance. The sales turnover stood Rs 77 crore and production at Rs 71.54 crore last year, against Rs 94 crore and Rs 84 crore in the previous year respectively. But, Karnataka Antibiotic and Pharmaceuticals Ltd (KAPL), joint venture between HAL and the Karnataka State Industrial and Investment Development Corporation (KSIIDC), improved its production to Rs 246 crore last year against Rs 220 crore of the previous year. Likewise, the sales went up to Rs 224 crore from Rs 196.45 crore during the period.

Orissa Drugs and Chemicals Ltd, joint venture between IDPL and the Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Orissa (IPICOL) is still under the process of liquidation. The joint ventures like Maharashtra Antibiotics and Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Manipur State Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Ltd, both involving HAL remained closed while there is not production yet in IDPL's wholly owned subsidiary in Tamil Nadu.