-PTI Prices of 42 essential medicines used in treatment of various ailments including tuberculosis, cancer, cardiac diseases, asthma, epilepsy and depression have been capped by the government, reducing their cost by up to 15 per cent. Drug price regulator, National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), in a notification on its website, said it “has fixed/revised ceiling prices of 45 scheduled formulations of Schedule-I under Drugs (Price Control) Amendment Order, 2016.” “Out of the 45,...

-The Hindu IPR Policy will promote indigenous knowledge on water conservation steps. The National Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Policy will send a clear message to Washington that India’s IPR regime is not regressive, Commerce & Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said. The comments come ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the U.S. next month when the issue of greater protection and enforcement of IPR may come up for discussions. Sitharaman, however, said India...

-The Hindu The new Intellectural Property Policy, unveiled by the Finance Minister is in compliance with TRIPS. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley released India’s National Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Policy recently. The Policy which is in compliance with WTO's (World Trade Organisation) agreement on TRIPS (Trade Related aspects of IPRs), aims to sustain entrepreneurship and boost Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pet scheme 'Make in India.' Here are the highlights: >> The Policy aims to...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Drug pricing regulator National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has slashed prices of 54 essential medicines by up to 55%, including commonly used drugs for cancer (brain and breast), hypertension, diabetes, antibiotics and other heart disorders. The move is aimed at bringing down prices of commonly used drugs for critical diseases by expanding span of price regulation to cover new drugs, NPPA Chairman Bhupinder Singh told TOI. In...

-The Hindu Medicines remain overpriced and unaffordable in India. In a country mired in poverty, medical debt remains the second biggest factor for keeping millions in poverty. The international pharmaceutical industry has found its cash cow in India’s beleaguered consumers. With a minimum wage of Rs.250/day for a government worker, a basic wage worker afflicted with a chronic disease like multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis faces penury. His treatment, with drug combinations, which works out...