The new office premises of Gujarat chapter of Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association (IDMA) was unveiled by the chief minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi in Ahmendabad. The office premises has been named Ramanbhai B Patel IDMA (GSB) House in the memory of Late Ramanbhai B Patel, founder Chairman of Zydus Cadila who had initiated efforts to bring IDMA to Gujarat in 1971.

The chief minister spoke about how Shri Ramanbhai B Patel had played a vital role in furthering the cause of the pharma industry in the State. Referring to the untapped potential in the state, he invited entrepreneurs to set up industries in Kutch which he said had tremendous potential for exports with its ports being nearest to the Middle East and European markets.

Pankaj R Patel, Chairman and Managing Director f Zydus Cadila in his address reminisced on Shri Ramanbhai B Patel’s association with IDMA over the years. Recalling the times when there was hardly any industry representation which could put forth the concerns of the manufacturers effectively, he said Shri Ramanbhai B Patel had always felt that there should be a concerted effort to network pharma manufacturers, big and small and collectively represent their concern. IDMA’s Gujarat Chapter was set up to plug this need. Moving onward, Pankaj R Patel said the association could play a pro-active role in helping the pharma industry prepare itself for the new patent regime beyond 2005.

Anil Patel, the Industries Minister said that the Government of Gujarat had offered several sops to the entrepreneurs for cluster development. This model, he said, was similar to the one offered by the Central Government.