Cipla Seeks Adoption of Pragmatic Intellectual Property Rights Policy

Pharma major Cipla Ltd has sought adoption of a pragmatic Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) policy including in-licensing within the present framework of its international obligations.

"We have always believed that free competition is the only way to ensure fair prices and better availability of drugs. We strongly believe that there should be no monopolies in healthcare; and in that context, India should adopt a pragmatic Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) policy including in-licensing within the present framework of our international obligations," Cipla chairman Y K Hamied said in the company's annual report.

Many countries such as Brazil, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia have already introduced compulsory licensing provisions. India must also examine the monopoly position of drugs and build safeguards to ensure that this does not happen. India has always stood for the promotion of knowledge and consideration for the greater good, Mr Hamied said.

India's pharmaceutical exports registered the slowest growth in at least 15 years at 1.2 per cent to $14.84 billion last fiscal amid growing tension with the US over intellectual property rights (IPR)-related issues.

As the IPR issues raised by the US--India's biggest market--are unlikely to be resolved any time soon, industry observers say that pharma exports will miss the target of $25 billion set for 2014-15 in a government strategy paper.

According to commerce ministry data, in 2012-13, the country's pharma exports aggregated 14.66 billion.

The growth registered in 2013-14 is the slowest in nearly 15 years. The previous slowest was in 2009-10 when the pharma exports grew by just 5.9 per cent. In calendar year 2000, they grew by 7 per cent.