Union Health Minister J P Nadda on Wednesday reviewed regulation of drugs, cosmetics and medical devices, and emphasized on continuous dialogue with the pharma and medical devices industry to ensure highest quality of products.

Chairing the high-level review meeting, he said, “For India to become the global leader in drugs regulation to match our global reputation of ‘Pharmacy of the World’, we need to have a world class regulatory framework matching our scale of operations and international expectations.”

Highlighting the global position of India as the leading producer and exporter of drugs, he stressed on the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) to draw a roadmap with timelines of achieving global standards in its mandated activities.

Nadda said the upscaling needs to be systems-based focusing on highest standards of uniformity, technical upgradation and futuristic approach.

For export of drugs and pharmaceuticals, the system should be designed for proper intervention to maintain the quality of drugs being exported, he emphasized.

Stating that it is important for CDSCO to be in continuous dialogue with the drugs and medical devices industry to understand their issues and support them to fulfill the quality expectations and standards, the minister said, “Our focus should be on developing mechanisms that ensure ease of doing business for the drugs industry within the regulatory requirements. For this, CDSCO needs to be a user-friendly organization with state-of-the-art facilities matching global standards.”

On the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector in drugs manufacturing and the issues faced by the small scale industries to meet quality standards, he said, “Let us understand the issues faced by MSME sector and support them to strengthen their capacity and quality of products on the one hand, and encourage them to meet the regulatory requirements on the other.”

During the meeting, Nadda was briefed about the mandated activities of CDSCO, its achievements, future plans and various issues and challenges faced by it. He was updated on the progress of the scheme for strengthening the state drug regulatory system with a budget of Rs 850 crore which was launched in 2016 during his earlier tenure.

The Minister was also briefed on the roles and responsibilities of the central and state drugs regulatory bodies, and some of the challenges faced in alignment between them.