INCLEN Trust has viewed that availability of high quality, affordable and patient friendly anti-retroviral (ARVs) therapies has played a vital role in combating the spread of the epidemic in India even as the world still seeks a vaccine and cure for HIV/AIDS.

Ahead of the World AIDS Day, experts from across the country have lauded the efforts of the pharmaceutical industry for ensuring a steady supply of innovative therapies for government programmes which currently provide free treatment or at subsidized cost.

The new therapies in the form of Fixed Dose Combinations (FDCs) have become better, more effective, easier to take and easier to tolerate thus improving patient compliance. For instance, the WHO recommended first line Highly Active Anti Retroviral Therapy (HAART) developed by Ranbaxy Laboratories is available in convenient daily use packs and easy to understand instructions. Cipla too made pioneering efforts to supply affordable drugs to HIV/AIDS patients in Africa.

Globally, Gilead Sciences has signed a licensing agreement with the Medicines Patent Pool to increase access to HIV treatment in developing countries.

India is now ranked second globally in terms of total number of people receiving life-saving drugs. As per UNAIDS, the number of people living with HIV in the country receiving anti-retroviral therapy approximately has increased approximately four fold from 2007 to 2012. Currently more than 650,000 people living with HIV are receiving treatment and it is expected that one million people would be covered by the national treatment programme in a short time frame.

The ARVs are being sourced for various large treatment programmes by major institutions such as UNICEF, Global Fund, UNITAID/ CHAI (Clinton Health Access Initiative), Red Cross, IDA, Population Services International (PSI), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), MSF, etc.

“The overall conducive ecosystem of our country is to be credited for the success of combating the epidemic of AIDS. As a country, we have a large poor population, so the industry has had a huge opportunity to target the bottom of pyramid by making low-cost high quality drugs available in the market,” said Dr NK Arora, executive director, INCLEN Trust.

In India, 21 lakh people are estimated to be living with HIV/AIDS. India manufactures most of the drugs that are used to cure HIV around the world.

“The success of reducing new infections of HIV-AIDS in India and emerging as the largest and cheapest generic HIV drug maker has been a concerted effort by the government, funding agencies, pharmaceuticals and researchers. This achievement can also be attributed to a strong disease prevention message delivery,” said Dr Rana Mehta, leader, Healthcare Practices, PwC India.

Earlier in April this year, former President of US, Bill Clinton lauded India’s phenomenal contribution in helping millions of impoverished people around the world bravely face the scourge of HIV/AIDS and other life threatening diseases through generic formulations.

Despite significant progress made on controlling new infections, experts feel there needs to be continuous effort towards eliminating the disease.

According to Monica Mendiratta, general secretary, Drishtikon, an NGO working in AIDS prevention, “Despite the progress made in containing HIV/AIDS, approximately 50 per cent of the people who need treatment in India still don't have access to these drugs.”

Dr Sunil Kr Jain, chief pharmacist, AIIMS stated that Indian pharma companies are self-sufficient to handle the HIV menace within the country.