Notwithstanding the steps being taken by the union ministry of MSME for setting up a pharma cluster in Chennai to help the pharmaceutical manufacturing units, the efforts so far did not bear fruit as the industry is not co-operating with the government scheme, lamented S Subburaju, assistant director, MSME, Government of India.

He said the government of India had allocated Rs.15 crore for creating common infrastructure facilities required for the cluster development in Tamil Nadu. If it is not utilized, the amount will go waste soon, he said while delivering a lecture on “Central Government Incentives” in the awareness program organized by state drugs control department in association with IDMA and TN-PMA in Chennai.

“We have initiated work for setting up the cluster. In the diagnostic study conducted by us, we have identified 350 companies in Chennai zone. We approached the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association and other industry organizations for the purpose, but little co-operation was received. The industry is not co-operating with our scheme, so it is failing. However, regular awareness programmes are being conducted,” he told Pharmabiz on the sidelines of the meeting.

If the cluster is formed it will help promote and strengthen the existing infrastructure facilities to make Chennai pharma industry a globally competitive one. The units can reduce the cost of production by 20 per cent within 3 years and world class manufacturing practices can be adopted. The state capital will become one of the off-shoring locations for R&D, manufacturing and supporting, he said.

According to Subburaju, there are 350 pharmaceutical manufacturing companies in Chennai, which include 30 bulk drug industries and the turnover of these units come around Rs.2152 crore. The estimated export turnover of pharma cluster is Rs.1060 crore. With the formation of the cluster, three districts will be benefited, Chennai, Kancheepuram and Thiruvalur.

While canvassing the industry people into the scheme, he said government is providing Rs.2.50 lakhs for the diagnostic study, 50 per cent will be given in the beginning and the remaining amount will be given on receipt of Diagnostic Study Report of the scheme. The officer reminded the leaders of the industry to expedite the DSR before March this year.

The drugs control director, S Selvaraju, who presided over the meeting, said pharmaceutical companies in Gujarat follow the cluster concept. So the industry leaders in Tamil Nadu should positively study the cluster concept.

However, Tamil Nadu IPA secretary J Jayaseelan said that there is no benefit for the industry by establishing a cluster expending huge sum of money because as per Schedule M all manufacturing companies should set up all the facilities including warehousing, ETP, Lab etc. Since the industry units are fragmented in various locations, the cluster will not help the industry. Each industry has its own policies and marketing strategies which it does not want to share with others. Since every industry has to comply the norms of Schedule M, nobody will go after the cluster scheme. “It is not viable and after all useless,” he told Pharmabiz.

Unlike other industries, responded B Sethuraman, president of PMA, pharma industry has its own problems. Practically this scheme is not viable. But he said a common laboratory will sometimes benefit the units.

S Lekshmi Narayanam secretary of Alathur Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (APMA), said he is encouraging his members to co-operate with the cluster scheme he has developed at Alathur, near Chennai.