-The Telegraph New Delhi: The Supreme Court today ruled that once the government reduces the prices of essential drugs, the new rates would come into immediate effect and companies cannot continue selling at earlier prices. A bench of Justices R.M. Lodha and Kurien Joseph rejected the arguments of multinational giant GlaxoSmithKline Pharma that companies are entitled to sell drugs at old rates for 15 days to dispose off stocks. According to the bench,...

-Down to Earth Expresses concern over alcohol brands being advertised in violation of rules India is emerging as the favourite destination for alcohol promotion of marketing companies. Their new targets are women and youth, who at present comprise a very small percentage of alcohol consumers in India. These are the observations made by a report-Alcohol Marketing and Regulatory Policy Environment in India-put out by the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI). It...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The price caps imposed by the Indian government on 348 drugs earlier this year have created only an illusion of control, keeping many medicines for conditions ranging from asthma to diabetes and heart disease beyond price regulations, experts said today. The price control order issued by the department of pharmaceuticals in May has led to a 22 per cent reduction in the average cost of some 250 medicines,...

-The Hindu Unless a deeper, institutional change is ushered in to break the nexus between drug companies and the regulatory regime, Indians consuming drugs may be exposing themselves to serious risks Even before I walked into the Mayflower Hotel in the heart of Washington on a crisp autumn afternoon to meet Dinesh Thakur, whistle-blower and former director of India-based pharmaceutical giant Ranbaxy, I had a hunch that this conversation would spark some...

-Live Mint Apex court expresses concerns about drug trials being permitted on humans without comprehensive rules to regulate the approval process New Delhi: The apex court on Monday directed the health ministry to justify its approval for 162 global clinical trials in India, increasing the uncertainty faced by the nation's $500 million clinical research industry. The Supreme Court expressed its concerns about drug trials being permitted on humans without comprehensive rules to...