Report of the Committee on Drugs and Pharmaceutical Industry

On February 8, 1974, the Ministry of Petroleum and Chemicals, government of India, set up the Committee on Drugs and Pharmaceutical Industry, under the chairmanship of Jaisukhlal Hathi (a former member of parliament from the Hallar constituency in the then Bombay Presidency, and a former member of the Constituent Assembly).The committee was set up to address the government’s concerns about the growing drugs and pharmaceutical industry in India. Questions about the performance of the public sector, the increasing influence of multinational firms in the field, the prices of locally produced medicines, among others, had been raised in Parliament.Its tasks included enquiring into the progress of the drugs and pharmaceutical industry; recommending measures to ensure that the public sector can lead in the manufacture of basic drugs and formulations, and in research and development; making recommendations to promote the rapid growth of the drugs industry, particularly for Indian and small-scale industries, keeping in mind the need for a “balanced regional dispersal in the industry.”The committee set out to examine arrangements and propose recommendations for the integration of new technology into the industry; to recommend measures for quality control of drugs, and to assist small-scale units; to examine and make recommendations on measures taken to reduce the prices of basic drugs and formulations; to recommend measures for providing essential drugs and common household remedies to the general public, especially in rural areas; and to recommend institutional arrangements to ensure the equitable distribution of basic drugs and raw materials, especially for the small scale sector.