The Indian government has banned 328 combination drugs in a blow to both domestic and foreign pharmaceutical firms, but the ban has been cheered by health activists worried about growing antibiotic resistance due to the misuse of medicines.
The Indian government had in 2016 banned about 350 such drugs, referred to as fixed-dose combinations (FDCs), but the industry mounted various legal challenges that prompted the supreme court to call for a review by an advisory board.
The health ministry said the board had found there was “no therapeutic justification for the ingredients contained in 328 FDCs and that these FDCs may involve risk to human beings”.
It said it was prohibiting the “manufacture for sale, sale or distribution for human use” of the 328 FDCs with immediate effect. It did not name the drugs or give any brands.
Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association president Deepnath Roychowdhury, said the order would have an impact on a market worth an estimated Rs 16 billion ($222 million) a year for such drugs, produced by small and large pharmaceutical firms.
