The US Food and Drugs Administration’s approval of the first Indian anti-AIDS drugs is a feather in the cap of the Indian pharma industry and will go a long way in globalizing Indian Pharma.

The Indian pharmaceutical industry has achieved several milestones. The recent US Food and Drugs Administration’s (FDA) approval of the Indian anti-retroviral drugs, which are a first of their kind, strengthens the fact that Indian pharma has become a force to reckon with. FDA has approved anti-AIDS drugs manufactured by Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited, Gurgaon, and Aurobindo Pharma Ltd., Hyderabad. This approval comes as a major boost to the domestic pharma companies, who have doubled their efforts since Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) came into effect from early this year.

The Indian pharmaceutical indus-try, which currently stands at $9 bn, is slated to grow to $25 bn by 2010. Indian drug makers will have a 33% share in the global generics market by 2007 compared to the current 4%. The global output of the Indian industry is ranked 4th in terms of volume and 13th in terms of value. It is one of the globally competitive industries in India with a strong R&D base and with exports accounting for nearly 32% of the total revenue. Of the 32% exports, 90% constitute generic drugs. Research costs in India are 40% less than in the US. TRIPS also seems to have positive effect on the domestic pharma industry, in terms of better R&D activities. Some 50-70 new pat-ented drugs are already in develop-ment and could be in the market by 2010.

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