Fake drugs' export: Govt calls meeting

Following the European Commission allegations that India is the biggest supplier of counterfeit drugs to the European Union, the Union commerce ministry has called for a meeting of key stakeholders in the drug industry "" pharmaceutical exporters, the Export Promotion Council and the drugs control department "" to gauge the seriousness of the allegation and take remedial measures to promote medicine exports to the EU.

Nearly one-fourth of the Indian drug export revenues, worth over $1 billion, come from the EU market.

According to sources, the allegations of counterfeiting will also be addressed in the forthcoming strategy paper being prepared by a task force, formed by the commerce ministry at the behest of the Prime Minister's Office.

The departments concerned and the Export Promotion Council would be asked to present their views on the issue during the meeting scheduled next week, an official source said.

The annual statistics on counterfeit product seizures, of the European Commission Taxation and Customs Union, said last year customs authorities of EU member states had registered 497 cases of counterfeit medicines at the external borders of the EU.