The 63rd edition of the Indian Pharmaceutical Congress (IPC) to be held at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre from December 16 to 18, 2011 will evolve around the theme 'Pharma Vision 2020: India--the Pharma Hub'.


The key objective is to bring back the involvement of the pharma industry to the event and highlight the key achievements. The pharma industry has been one of the sectors which was unscathed during the global economic slowdown. The sector has managed to clock its 12-15 percent growth rate and be recognized in the international arena. There is a need to reinstate the pharma industry capability and a platform like the IPC would be no better location, said Suresh Khanna, joint secretary, IPC 2011 committee, chairman Stabicon Life Sciences Pvt Ltd and managing director Dossier Solutions.


All these years the focus of the event lacked an attention towards the industry and therefore we have made considerable efforts to ensure ways to bring the sector back on the track. The focus will be to highlight the key strengths of the sector which accounts for Rs.88,000 crore. The manufacturing prowess in the area of active pharmaceutical ingredients and formulations together with the dependable capability in contract research and clinical trials have made the country a competitive outsourcing destination. We need to portray these strengths of the sector and this is where the IPC 2011 will provide the much-needed exposure, added Khanna.


Bangalore is recognized as the Information Technology capital and the country’s largest biotechnology cluster. Over the years, the two events, IT.com and the Bangalore Bio India which have been held for over a decade have catapulted the sectors which are part of the knowledge industry to the next level of growth. Pharmaceuticals sector covers research and production which requires acumen and dedication of qualified and quality personnel is also a key component of the knowledge industry. This is where IPC in Bangalore is keen to benchmark the technological strength of pharma industry, pointed out Khanna.


The three-day event will have scientific sessions, poster displays and an exhibition. Around 9,000 participants are expected of which half would be the student community. There will be international speakers addressing the conference.


Pharmabiz had reported earlier on the constitution of the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) for the 63rd IPC which is headed by Dr B R Jagashetty, Karnataka Drugs Controller and Prof. V B Desai as its advisor. Dr B Suresh, president, Pharmacy Council of India and vice chancellor, JSS University, Mysore & Dilip Surana, managing director, Micro Labs are the Patrons for the Congress. C P Bothra, director, Medreich Sterilab is the secretary, Suresh Khanna, chairman Stabicon Life Sciences Pvt Ltd and managing director Dossier Solutions & Prof. T V Narayana, chairman - Education Division, IPA & principal, SBD College of Pharmacy, Bangalore are the joint secretary & Jayaprakash Madi, managing director, Wintac Limited is the treasurer in the LOC. Ram Banarase, chairman - Regulatory Affairs Division, IPA, Kaushik Desai, chairman - Industrial Pharmacy Division, IPA and S D Joag, Hon. General Secretary -IPA are coordinators from IPA Centre.