Panjab: Over 100 Pharma Units to Close Down; Power Demand Soars by 26%

17
April
2024

Over 100 pharmaceutical micro, small, and medium enterprises in Panjab might close down as they have failed to comply with the revised Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) prescribed by the govt. The GMP is framed by the World Health Organization. These units are located mostly in Ludhiana, SAS Nagar, and Amritsar. While the big formulation units and bulk drug units have managed to upgrade themselves, the smaller units say that they do not have the financial resources. Jagdeep Singh, secretary general of the Pharma Industries Confederation said, ‘Small units work on very thin profit margins. They cannot afford $360K to $1.2M to make the modifications. If the deadline is extended beyond December, they will get some breathing space.’ In the 2000s, bulk of the pharmaceutical manufacturers shifted from Panjab to neighboring Himachal Pradesh, which provided better facilities. Singh said, ‘Even in Himachal Pradesh, 410 smaller units have been forced to exit from the business. Only 255 units have international certifications.’ Meanwhile, in the first 10 days of April, temperatures rose in Panjab, which led to a 26% to 31% jump in power consumption. As per the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited data, the power consumption in the state was 138 MU on 1 Apr, which rose to 155 MU on 9 Apr. Last year, on the corresponding day, the consumption was 123 MU. This week the Indian Metrology Department has issued storm and rain warnings which will be detrimental to the wheat crop being harvested.

Photo by Jorge Royan

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