Partners in Progress: PPL 2026

PPL 2026 brought together India's pharma packaging ecosystem to explore how collaboration, innovation, and technical expertise can strengthen patient safety, product stability, and operational efficiency. Across partner-led sessions, speakers discussed how structured systems, material science, regulatory alignment, and technology integration collectively elevate packaging from a support function to a strategic enabler.

- 

Building on the importance of structured systems, the sessions began with combination products, where packaging directly influences therapeutic performance. Prabhaharan Sankaran, Manager – Technical Customer Services, India, West Pharmaceutical Services, highlighted that regulatory expectations for electronic drug delivery systems and integrated formats are steadily evolving. Submissions must now address all relevant performance criteria through a holistic, risk-based framework rather than isolated testing. In this complex landscape, specialised expertise and integrated capabilities are critical to streamline development, validation, and regulatory readiness.

From combination products, the discussion moved into chemical interfaces, particularly the challenge of nitrosamine control. Dr Vivek Jha, Head - R&D, Cilicant, and Dhairy Sharma, Manager – Business Development, Healthcare Division, explained that nitrosamine impurities can arise during manufacturing or form gradually during storage. Active packaging solutions combining scavenger matrices with reaction suppressors can significantly reduce these risks, transforming packaging into an active chemical control system that protects product stability throughout its lifecycle.