Even as the second phase of the budget session of Parliament begins on April 25, the pharmaceutical industry in the country is hopeful that several bills related to health and pharma sectors will get the final Parliament nod as this part of the session will largely be utilised for passing non-budget legislation.

Earlier, the central government decided to hold the budget session of Parliament in two phases due to the impending Assembly elections in six states in the country. The first phase of the session was held from February 23 to March 16 and that part of the session was utilised mostly for budget related deliberations and legislation including the presentation of General and Railway budgets. The second phase of the session will be held from April 25 to May 13. And the industry is hoping that this part of the session will largely be utilised for passing non-budget legislation.

In fact, several Bills related to health and pharma sectors have been pending for quite some time for introduction and passage in Parliament.

The Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill (ART Bill),  Drugs and Cosmetics (Amendment) Bill, Biotechnology Regulatory Authority of India Bill (NBRA Bill), HIV/AIDS Bill, Ethical Guidelines for Biomedical Research on Human Subjects Bill, and Allied and Healthcare Professional’s Central Council Bill are some of the Bills in health and pharma sectors which have been waiting for Parliament's final nod.

In fact, three Bills related to health and pharma sectors, the Drugs and Cosmetics (Amendment) Bill, 2015, the HIV Bill and the Mental Health Care Bill were found a place in the tentative list of government legislative and financial businesses expected to be taken up during the last winter session in November last year. But, as the Parliament did not function properly, all these bills are still pending for final Parliament nod.