Gujarat witnesses exponential growth in pharma exports

Pharma exports from Gujarat have grown six-fold in the last decade, crossing $3 billion mark in 2016, according to state government officials. 
 

Gujarat is counted among the leading pharmaceutical manufacturing hubs in the country with an almost 35% share in national production and around 28% share in pharma exports. The state has registered a six-fold growth in pharma exports over the last decade. 

According to H G Koshia, commissioner of Gujarat Food and Drug Control Administration (FDCA), exports have grown from $562 million in 2006 to $3 billion in 2016. He added that the state houses several World Health Organization (WHO) certified manufacturing units, apart from US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) and European Union (EU) approved sites. 

The state has over 3,300 pharma manufacturing units. Of these, around 255 are WHO certified. There are also 23 Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) certified by the Government of UK. The state also has another 15 EU certified units.  “This is a significant number given that only about 10-15% of the manufacturing units in the country have WHO and good manufacturing practices (GMP) certifications,” Koshia said. 

There are around 100 bulk drug manufacturing units in the state as well. Gujarat houses nearly 135 licensed medical devices manufacturers in the country, out of the total 240-250 such companies in the country, informed Koshia. 

Chirag Doshi, former chairman of the Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association (IDMA), Gujarat State Board said that the state has been continuously making efforts to create export infrastructure which meets international manufacturing standards. “Also apart from USFDA approved units (there are around 20-25 such units in Gujarat now), manufacturing sites with MHRA or GMP approvals too have come up in the last decade. This has resulted in the growth in exports,” he said. 

Meanwhile, Gujarat FDCA has also started work on training its inspectors on GMP for medical devices and drugs in line with the training imparted to USFDA inspectors. It has collaborated with US-based Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a global safety consulting and certification company, for online courses for its officers. Globally, UL offers about 1,200 courses and has trained around 38,000 US FDA inspectors.