-The Times of India The government is all set to crack the whip on India's shameful pharma-doctor nexus. The National Development Council (NDC), led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will meet on December 27 to discuss bringing a legislation requiring drug companies to mandatorily disclose payments made to doctors for research, consulting, lectures, travel and entertainment. Doctors involved in ghost writing to promote Pharma products will also be disqualified. The official NDC document...

-PTI The Planning Commission has set a target for the Indian pharmaceutical industry to reach USD 100 billion by 2020 and account for 5 per cent share of the global drug industry in the next five years. According to the final draft for 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17) by the panel, the objective of the sector will be to cross the USD 60 billion mark in 2017, which will be 5 per...

-The Hindu In a major boost to the country’s private vaccine manufacturing pharmaceutical companies, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that India’s national regulatory authority — Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) — and its affiliated institutions meet the prescribed international standards. India is a major vaccine producer with 12 major vaccine manufacturing facilities. These vaccines are used for the national and international market, reaching nearly 150 countries. Every second child...

-The Economic Times The environment ministry has simplified the procedures for granting clearances to special economic zones as it seeks to shed the anti-industry image. A recent order issued by the environment ministry states that the environmental clearance process for SEZs will now follow the system laid out for National Industrial and Manufacturing Zones under the National Manufacturing Policy 2011. Under the new system, the central and state governments will delegate power to...

-The Hindu TV commercial on GlaxoSmithKline’s vaccine against Rota virus makes unsubstantiated claims, says ASCI At a time when the commercial interests of major private hospitals or Pharma giants often take precedence over the health concerns of the common man, a New Delhi doctor has managed to get the Advertising Standards Council of India to stall a television commercial, aired by GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, hailing the benefits of its vaccine against Rota virus. The...