The Rajiv Kher Task Force, constituted by prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh way back in July 2006 to recommend measures for increasing exports of pharmaceutical products and also to find ways and means to ease the bottlenecks coming in the way of pharmaceutical exports, has submitted its report to the government. Its key recommendations included comprehensive measures for accelerating the growth of generic pharmaceutical industry in the country, enhancing India's R&D, promoting contract manufacturing, drug discovery & clinical trials, Indian System of Medicines & Ayush.

For accelerating the growth of generic pharmaceutical industry in the country, the task force recommended to pursue the prioritised funding by institutions like Exim Bank through Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs). "Such Public and private initiative on a mega scale in this area is essential for jumpstarting India's pharmaceutical industry into a higher orbit achieving quantum growth," it said.

It also asked the government to treat investments in quality on par with R&D to enhance quality and skilled scientific personnel.

For enhancing R&D, the task force recommended that the commercial R&D firms promoted by established firms as subsidiaries should be allowed for the purpose of tax holidays in pharmaceutical industry. Other measures in this regard include focusing on immediately commercialisable technologies by government institutions, providing certain capital by the banks for taking up commercialisable R&D and encouraging public private Initiatives in R&D.

The task force, headed by Rajiv Kher, joint secretary in the union ministry of commerce, had held several rounds of meetings with all the stakeholders including the pharma industry and the officials before finalising its findings. The task force exclusively on pharam exports was constituted by the PM in the wake of the pharmacy industry making strides in the country during the last some years. There has been an increasing activity in the pharma export front as it has grown by leaps and bounds, especially during the last some years. Today the pharma sector alone contributes about five per cent of the total exports of the country.

As the industry has grown by leaps and bounds, it brought in its wake its own problems and bottlenecks. It was under this background the PM intervened to form an exclusive task force to find ways to ease the pharma exports which holds tremendous future.

The terms of reference of task force on pharmaceutical sector are, (i) to examine the problems being faced by the exporters of pharmaceutical products in consultation with the stakeholders and to prepare short-term, medium-term and long-term Action Plans, (ii) to review the progress of export of pharmaceuticals products and suggest measures of achieving the growth targets, (iii) to act as 'Think tank' and make appropriate policy recommendations for boosting exports and generating more employment in the sector, and (iv) to consult the trade and industry and identify policy and procedural bottlenecks and suggest ways to eliminate them.