Fake Drugs Menace: India among Worst Offenders

Sheth concluded that the extent of counterfeit drugs was 3.1 percent of total drugs sold in India. He said that the country faced a glitch from substandard drugs that lacked the ingredients that should be there in a drug. His report said "Based on domestic sales of Rs 31,500 crore in 2006, the extent of suspected counterfeit medicines would be extrapolated to Rs 100 crore. The figure is considerably lower than Rs 4,000 crore in earlier reports," reported by the ET.

Further, it is seen that a whistle-blower policy was announced by the health minister with a reward of Rs 25 lakh two years ago, but no one has received it so far, revealed Ranjit Shahani, managing director of Novartis India. This only highlights the poor regulation and law in India.

While India faces the menace of substandard drugs and the healthcare industry lacks transparency, the country should push for better global laws against fake and substandard drugs.

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