Himachal: Rs 30-cr drug laboratory fails to clean pharma mess

The quality of drugs manufactured in the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh (BBN) industrial belt has shown little improvement even a year after the commissioning of a modern drug testing laboratory at Baddi, established at a cost exceeding Rs 30 crore. The facility, projected as a game-changer for quality assurance in the state’s pharmaceutical sector, has so far failed to deliver tangible results.The state government spends around Rs 5 crore annually to run the laboratory, which has been outsourced to a Panchkula-based private agency. The lab tests nearly 5,000 drug samples each year, with the cost per sample pegged at about Rs 10,000. This is significantly higher than the Rs 3,000– Rs 4,000 charged by private laboratories for similar tests in the open market. Despite this substantial expenditure, the lab appears to have made little difference in improving compliance among drug manufacturers.Cases of substandard drugs have continued to surface with worrying regularity, severely denting the image of Himachal Pradesh’s pharmaceutical industry. According to the state’s own data, 1.39 per cent of drug samples drawn by state drug authorities over the past three years failed to meet prescribed quality standards.The picture becomes far more alarming when national data is taken into account. Of the 1,538 drug samples declared substandard across the country between March and December 2025, as many as 477, nearly 31 per cent, were linked to pharmaceutical firms based in Himachal Pradesh. These firms are spread across key industrial clusters including Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh, Paonta Sahib, Kala Amb, Mehatpur, Sansarpur Terrace and Solan.The Baddi laboratory was set up with Rs 30 crore provided by the Union government to the state Health Department in 2017 under the 12th Five-Year Plan, with the remaining amount contributed by the state government. However, structural and administrative weaknesses within the state drugs department have diluted the effectiveness of regulation.One of the major concerns is the irrational distribution of drug inspectors across districts. While districts like Kinnaur and Mandi, which have very few manufacturing units, are relatively well-staffed, critical pharma hubs such as BBN and Sirmaur continue to face acute shortages. Inspectors posted in low-activity districts remain underutilised, while regions with the highest concentration of drug manufacturers and the greatest incidence of substandard drugs remain inadequately monitored.State Drugs Controller Dr Manish Kapoor acknowledged the staffing gaps, stating that against 44 sanctioned posts of drug inspectors, only 39 are currently filled across Baddi, Sirmaur and other industrial clusters, with five posts lying vacant for years. In the BBN industrial area alone, which houses around 450 drug and cosmetic manufacturing units, three drug inspector posts have remained vacant for over three years. Of the nine inspectors posted in the area, only six oversee drug manufacturing units, while one is assigned to cosmetic manufacturers.Kapoor confirmed that the private lab is assigned to test 5,500 to 6,000 samples a year with Rs 5 crore annual funding received from the government.Experts argue that beyond manpower shortages, the entire system of drug testing and enforcement requires urgent review. Unless regulatory mechanisms are strengthened and resources deployed where they are most needed, expensive infrastructure like the Baddi lab will continue to fall short of its intended purpose—ensuring the manufacture of safe and quality drugs.

Himachal: Rs 30-cr drug laboratory fails to clean pharma mess

High costs, weak enforcement and skewed manpower distribution blunt impact of Baddi testing facility

Ambika Sharma

Himachal: Rs 30-cr drug laboratory fails to clean pharma mess

High costs, weak enforcement and skewed manpower distribution blunt impact of Baddi testing facility

Ambika Sharma

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