A Study of the Role of Government of India in Helping Indian Pharma Industry Cope Up with the Challenges of Product Patent Regime
European Journal of Economics, Finance and Administrative Sciences ISSN 1450-2275 Issue 13 (2008) © EuroJournals, Inc. 2008 http://www.eurojournalsn.com
A Study of the Role of Government of India in Helping Indian Pharma Industry Cope up with the Challenges of Product Patent Regime
Neeraj Dixit IES Management College, Bandra(W), Mumbai, India Tel: 91-22-26551616; Fax: 91-22-26551818 E-mail: dixitneeraj20012003@yahoo.co.in Abstract India has implemented the Product Patent regime from 1st January 2005. Previously for the past 35 years India had Process Patent which allowed Indian Pharmaceutical Companies to ‘Copy’ molecules of Multinational Pharmaceutical companies and sell them under their brand names. The arrival of the Product patent meant that Indian Pharmaceutical Companies could no longer ‘Copy’ molecules. This has created lot of problems for the Indian Pharmaceutical companies as their own R&D for new molecules is at a very nascent stage. The purpose of this paper is to find out what are the expectations of the Indian Pharmaceutical companies from the Indian Government to help them cope up with the challenges of the Product Patent regime. The study finds out that although majority of Pharma companies are satisfied with the efforts of Government of India in helping them cope up with the challenges of product patent regime, still there were lot of areas where they expect help from the Government. The study finds out that relaxation in Drug Price control order, giving incentives for R&D and taking decisions regarding Data Exclusivity, Compulsory Licensing & Incremental Innovation were the main issues in which Pharma companies expected help from the Government of India.
Keywords: Research & Development (R&D), Intellectual Property Rights, Drugs. JEL Classification Codes: O30, O34, L65
1. Introduction
The Indian Pharmaceutical industry has transformed itself over the past three decades in India, being almost non existing till 1970’s, to now being a
A Study of the Role of Government of India in Helping Indian Pharma Industry Cope up with the Challenges of Product Patent Regime
Neeraj Dixit IES Management College, Bandra(W), Mumbai, India Tel: 91-22-26551616; Fax: 91-22-26551818 E-mail: dixitneeraj20012003@yahoo.co.in Abstract India has implemented the Product Patent regime from 1st January 2005. Previously for the past 35 years India had Process Patent which allowed Indian Pharmaceutical Companies to ‘Copy’ molecules of Multinational Pharmaceutical companies and sell them under their brand names. The arrival of the Product patent meant that Indian Pharmaceutical Companies could no longer ‘Copy’ molecules. This has created lot of problems for the Indian Pharmaceutical companies as their own R&D for new molecules is at a very nascent stage. The purpose of this paper is to find out what are the expectations of the Indian Pharmaceutical companies from the Indian Government to help them cope up with the challenges of the Product Patent regime. The study finds out that although majority of Pharma companies are satisfied with the efforts of Government of India in helping them cope up with the challenges of product patent regime, still there were lot of areas where they expect help from the Government. The study finds out that relaxation in Drug Price control order, giving incentives for R&D and taking decisions regarding Data Exclusivity, Compulsory Licensing & Incremental Innovation were the main issues in which Pharma companies expected help from the Government of India.
Keywords: Research & Development (R&D), Intellectual Property Rights, Drugs. JEL Classification Codes: O30, O34, L65
1. Introduction
The Indian Pharmaceutical industry has transformed itself over the past three decades in India, being almost non existing till 1970’s, to now being a
References: 56 [14] [15] European Journal of Economics, Finance And Administrative Sciences - Issue 13 (2008) Dr