20 Feb , Dr.Avnish Jolly : The Minister for Steel, Chemicals and Fertilizers Shri Ram Vilas Paswan has said that 40 generic drug stores under the brand Jan Aushadhi will be opened by the end of March this year. The stores are to dispense generic drugs at a fraction of the price of branded drugs in the market. The stores to remain open round the clock are being set up with the participation of State Governments and NGOs. The Minister was speaking after laying the foundation stone of a new block of the public sector Indian Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Limited (IDPL) to manufacture ‘Cephalosporin’ in Gurgaon today. The Minister said the government is trying its best to provide affordable health services to everybody. Shri Paswan said, the new Pharmaceutical Policy, when approved, will reduce the price of medicines of 354 drugs.
The new Cephalosporin Block shall be constructed over an area of five acres, producing latest Cephalosporins initially in the Tablet dosage form. The Block would be “State of Art”, energy efficient using solar energy for lighting and environment friendly as it would not generate any toxic effluents. The total estimated Project cost for the first phase is Rs. 13 crore. Additional manpower requirement for operating the plant would be about 150. In the second phase facilities for Cephalosporin Injectibles, Dry syrups and other formulation will be created.
IDPL also signed MoU with National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) on the occasion for transfer of technology for manufacture of Zinc Dispersible Tablets used for treatment of diarrhorea. This technology has been provided free of cost to IDPL.
On the occasion four new products were launched by the Minister. They include IDIFIZ, a digestive enzyme; MISMIS, an emergency contraceptive pill; PROXY, a sugar substitute containing Aspartame; and IDICON, an oral antifungal agent.
The new IDPL logo was also launched by Shri Paswan.