100-yr-old pharma unit shut in Chheharta, over 100 lose jobs

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Amritsar, September 18

A recently closed about 100-year-old Mehta Pharmaceuticals unit at Chheharta, producing active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) from herbal extracts, has rendered over 100 of its employees jobless. Now, only one unit manufacturing API has left in this segment.

Rajiv Mehta, proprietor of the closed unit, said regulatory problems were extreme which did not give him enough space to the market needs.

This category of API from herbal extracts comes under the Drugs and Cosmetic Act and depends upon herbs sourced from the Himalayas, forests of Madhya Pradesh and Southern peninsular India. Once prepared these are further sold to pharma units which formulate medicines from it. In India pharma units based at Mumbai, Goa and Gujarat are its biggest customers and overseas East Asian countries, Europe, South America, Canada and the USA are also its customers. However, its customers buy these products in small quantities making its trade unattractive. Raman Gupta, owner of other solitary unit in this category, said the news of closing down operation of the unit was depressing as it brought out the plight of industry here.

He said comparative study was required to comprehend the situation. For instance in Polland, Japan and Germany, universities provide R&D to this nature of industry, trading houses are associated manufacturers to sell the products.

Entire trade is in the unorganised sector. Private traders selling herbs are totally unaware of scientific ways and ways to handle herbs, he said. Law is strict for manufacturers. Technical guidance is being provided by the Central Government-run IHBT Palampur, Regional Research Laboratory, Jammu, and the Central Institute of Medicinal Aeromatic Plants, Lucknow. However, the malady is that, he rues, these do not share much information with the MSME units.