Budget push for drug labs, regulatory manpower

The government is likely to announce new drug testing laboratories and an increase in regulatory manpower in the upcoming Union Budget, according to three government officials aware of the deliberations.

- Priyanka Sharma

Amid increased global scrutiny on India's pharmaceutical exports, the move to revamp an existing scheme on drug regulation aims to tighten oversight of a $60-billion industry that supplies nearly a fifth of world's generic drugs.

The Centre has received numerous representations from state governments and Union territories, underscoring the urgent need for a more robust drug regulatory system, the officials said. The union health and family welfare ministry is finalizing a comprehensive plan to upgrade existing infrastructure and expand the technical workforce.

Persistent quality issues risk significant economic losses and increased international regulatory barriers in the backdrop of a series of failures denting India’s image as the "pharmacy of the world." In FY25, a total of 116,323 drug samples were tested by regulators. Of these, 3,104 were found ‘not of standard quality’, while 245 samples were found spurious and adulterated.