The pharma exporters in the country have asked the union commerce ministry to promote Indian Pharmacopeia (IP) to be recognized by other countries, especially in the unregulated markets. This will prove to be a big relief to  the country's small and medium pharma units (SMEs) as they will be in a better position to offer greater basket of products at more competitive prices.

Besides, the exporters have also asked the ministry to initiate measures to provide incentives to the SMEs to enter regulated markets. So far, the SMEs in the country are mostly exporting their products to the unregulated markets like Latin American and African countries.

The exporters also asked the ministry to take several other measures to promote the exporters in the country, especially the SMEs. The exporters raised these issues at a meeting between the industry and senior commerce ministry officials organised in Mumbai recently by the Pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil).

The exporters also demanded to the ministry for inclusion of bioequivalence studies in R&D under DST and 150 per cent income tax exemption for it, apart from 50 per cent reimbursement of bioequivalence studies. The industry also suggested to the ministry to take initiative to open more NIPER like institutions in the country so that there is no shortage of trained manpower in the country in future.

Putting forth its suggestions on the API sector, the exporters asked the ministry to promote PSUs for production of ingredients of API's and to impose anti-dumping duties on those products to protect the domestic industry. They also asked for relaxation of pollution norms for API industry.

Other suggestions of the exporters to further promote pharma export include: provision of technical person in Embassies of at least important markets and he should be accessible to the exporters here, so that technical difficulties if any arising for importers there out of Indian products can be sorted out then and there; MAI- plant approval should be included, the ceiling of 50 lakhs per company per annum may be maintained as it is; make overseas Indians associate members and marketing cooperatives should be promoted.