The small scale pharma industries in the country have once again pledged their support to the Union chemicals ministry's Jan Aushadhi project (generic drug stores) which it had threatened to withdraw if the government went ahead with its decision to pass the CDA Bill. Since the government did not pass the Bill in the last Parliament session, the SSIs have re-pledged their support to the Jan Aushadhi project.

"We are grateful to the PMO and DoP (department of pharmaceuticals) for preventing the passage of the CDA Bill. We shall wholeheartedly support Jan Aushadhi," the SME Pharma Industries Confederation (SPIC), a confederation consisting largely of small scale pharma industries, said in a letter to the prime minister.

The SSIs were so annoyed with the CDA Bill, under which the licensing of manufacturing units was to be centralized, that it had warned the government that if the government went ahead with the Bill, they will review their decision to support the Jan Aushadhi project which is an ambitious project of the union chemicals ministry aiming to make available quality medicines at affordable prices to the poorer sections of the society. The SSIs felt that once the Bill is passed and the CDA is formed, the SSIs will be struggling to survive.

"To cope with the change, SMEs will struggle to survive once again. With reduction in number of items manufactured by each unit, support to Jan Aushadhi stands jeopardized as survival takes precedence. Loss of SME brands will be colossal but they are left with no other alternative except direct selling to ensure off-take of the limited number of items manufactured by each SME. The outlet chains are being supported by many NGOs and State Governments in the interest of employment, revenue and affordable priced medicines. Since SMEs refuse to die, this is their answer to the CDA Bill and multinational takeover," SPIC had earlier warned the government.

The support of the SSIs is crucial to the Jan Aushadhi project as they have agreed to provide generic medicines at much cheaper prices while the big companies have expressed their reservation to support the project. Under this project, the government proposes to set up Jan Aushadhi Stores in each district of the country, preferably in the premises of the district hospitals. Though the public sector pharma undertakings like IDPL will also provide drugs to this project at cheaper rates, the government has to procure a large chunk of the drug requirements from the private companies once the project takes the pan-Indian shape.