The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) is expected to propose a new policy on foreign direct investment (FDI) in the pharma sector. As per the new DIPP’s proposal, 100 percent FDI would be allowed in brown-field projects, subject to government's approval. However, for brown-field project deals with rare facilities and critical verticals, only 49 percent FDI would be allowed with government's approval. Furthermore, DIPP also noted that 25 per cent of the total investment in the brown-field projects should be used in Research and Development (R&D) activities.
Meanwhile, the DIPP’s proposal has brought disappointment to Finance ministry, which stated that proposed 49 per cent FDI cap on projects dealing with rare facilities would discourage potential investors. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the pharma sector grew by more than double to $1.07 billion during April-August’ 2013 as compared to $487 million during the same period last year. During the period 2000-2013, India's pharmaceutical sector attracted $11.39 billion in foreign investment, which was around 6 percent of its total $200 billion foreign investment inflows.
On the other hand, the DIPP and health ministry are of the view that in the absence of such policy, affordability and accessibility of Indian generic drugs would be highly impacted. Industry's generic segment accounts for the largest chunk of the sector, with a share of around 72 percent in the total industry revenue. The Indian generic drug market grew at a CAGR of around 17 per cent between 2010-11 and 2012-13 mainly on the back of rising exports of generic drug due to their low cost.
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